Irene Cleanup – Whose Responsibility?

Photo by Claudia Holwill

If a tree falls in a forest storm…sorry, bad joke, I won’t go there.  While Irene wasn’t really much of a storm compared to others we’ve had in the past, the Hill did see a bit of damage, particularly from a number of very large trees that toppled on houses, fences and cars.  After a large tree in my own yard fell into my neighbor’s yard, and after seeing so many trees and branches down all around the neighborhood, I started wondering about who is responsible for clean up and paying for repairs in various situations.

That was a surprisingly difficult question to answer, which is apparently why there are so many disputes among neighbors when such a situation occurs.  From my research it seems as though the basic rule of thumb is that neither you nor your neighbor is responsible for an act of God.  But if one party is negligent, that party has an obligation to make the other whole.  Negligence is hard to prove, but if there is a complaint on the record, that complaint carries a lot of weight.  So if a diseased or dying tree is hanging over your property, work with your neighbor to fix it now before the next storm.

As DCist explained, “Things can get more complicated, though, if the property owner responsible for the tree is found to be particularly negligent, or if the tree, as many do, has roots or branches that cross property lines. In that case, you should really hope you’re friendly with that neighbor — if not, you could well end up re-visiting some of the various court cases that have touched upon tree-related conflicts over the years.”  So sometimes it’s best to just be a good neighbor and pitch in to get it taken care of together.

But if you do want to figure out where to draw the lines, NBC4 explains “When it comes to tree damage, it all depends on where the tree falls. If your tree falls on your neighbor’s house, your neighbor’s homeowner’s insurance will cover the damage. If your neighbor’s tree falls on your house, your homeowner’s insurance will cover the damage.” The basic breakdown is:

• If your property was damaged by trees that were in the public space (i.e. a tree box), you can file a claim through the District’s Office of Risk Management.  You can find the form on DC.gov or you can use the following link: http://orm.dc.gov/orm/lib/orm/docs_and_pdfs/claim_filing_instructions.pdf
• If a tree on your property falls on your neighbors house, your neighbor should file a claim under their homeowner’s insurance policy.
• If a tree on your property falls on your neighbor’s car, then the comprehensive-coverage portion of your neighbor’s auto insurance usually pays to repair it.
• If a few branches, even large ones, fall into your neighbor’s yard, the cost and effort to clean it up is theirs but pitching on or taking care if it yourself is the neighborly thing to do.

So what if your neighbor’s tree falls on your fence, causing only a few hundred dollars worth of damage?  Chances are, fixing it out of pocket will be cheaper than paying the insurance deductible.

So why did we lose so many large, healthy trees as Irene rolled through?  Here’s a bit of an explanation:

If you see a tree down that has not already been marked for removal by the city, report it to 311 so it can be added to the list.  And if there is still debris around your property, the Department of Public Works will collect it.  They offer the following tips on their website:

• From August 29-September 2 only, the Department of Public Works will remove from the treebox space(s) in front of residents’ homes, branches that are cut into 4′ lengths and tied into bundles no more than 2′ in diameter. After September 2, these items can be placed where the residents’ trash is collected.
• Please place debris, bagged or loose, in the treebox space, not the gutter or street so the gutters can remain clear and crews can run mechanical sweepers along the curb lanes and gutters. Also, DPW asks residents to resist putting the debris in the street to help prevent flooding in case of rain before the debris is collected. Do not include rocks, stones or concrete.
• Hurricane season ends in November, so please hold onto your sandbags, just in case. If you cannot keep your sandbags, please mix the sand with the soil in your yard or potted plants to aerate it. Please do not put the sandbags into the trash or empty the sand into the gutters or catch basins.