Neighbor's tree crashed on my slate roof garage.

Looking for someone who could remove the debris while my slate guy looks for someone to frame the back of the roof. Its shattered slate and wood from about half of a 3 car garage. Might need a dump truck or a small dumpster. Hard to estimate. Then I need an exorcist as this is the second tree that demolished a roof on my property.


Try Chichelo Rubbish Removal at 2017040013.

Then stop posting all the creepy occult stuff on your other thread!


mrincredible said:
Try Chichelo Rubbish Removal at 2017040013.
Then stop posting all the creepy occult stuff on your other thread!

 Thanks, I just called them and they are stopping by tomorrow.

Give up Halloween?


...now I'm wondering about opening that thread for a chuckle.... cheese


Seriously, hope all will be fixed easily, and similar issues won't repeat. Perhaps, just don't have overhanging trees around the garage?? (I know, you can't stipulate what neighbours do on their own property)


joanne said:
...now I'm wondering about opening that thread for a chuckle.... cheese


Seriously, hope all will be fixed easily, and similar issues won't repeat. Perhaps, just don't have overhanging trees around the garage?? (I know, you can't stipulate what neighbours do on their own property)

 Large trees, even when maintained properly, periodically fall over or drop large branches causing damage.  The only solution is to harvest suburban trees at age 30 or 40 and replace them.


Eucalypts drop large bits randomly from 7-10 years, and have been known to kill people as well as demolish various structures underneath, including walls, sheds and more permanent buildings; and crushing vehicles. So, yep, I get the seriousness of the matter. Plus we’re experiencing a very early start to our ‘watch out for cyclone-force storms’ season, and have already had large chunks of several States on simultaneous declared-drought/gale-force winds/supercell storms for most of last week and part of this week (I had to cancel activities at our workplace on Monday as it was too dangerous to travel; trees on roads etc). 


joanne said:
...now I'm wondering about opening that thread for a chuckle.... cheese


Seriously, hope all will be fixed easily, and similar issues won't repeat. Perhaps, just don't have overhanging trees around the garage?? (I know, you can't stipulate what neighbours do on their own property)

 Asked these neighbors so many times. After Sandy when trees were down my backyard was trashed because of the cranes that drove through to get to certain trees. PS&G will not move the lines so out of state contractors barged through on the one night I left the house as the indoor temps were down to 50 due to power outages. I now have a stand by generator. My street constantly lost power when the wind blew a leaf.

Since my yard was trashed I offered them the chance to let bucket trucks on my land to remove their tree as their yard has no access. I did that for a couple of years until the soil and grass were established. Crickets.

Now my car is totally dented, the Geico payment doesn't cover much due to the age of the car, which was my Dad's but rarely driven and only has 38,000 miles on it. Had to eat the deductible.

Deductible on the house and the loss of the 100 year old cottage slate. My home was on the Historic Homes Tour and the garage is so charming. Stucco, slate, 3 car with triple archways and double height ceilings. Destroying a piece of history. Inside I had an antique fireplace original to the property that I was working on refinishing.

I've taken down many trees at risk as the other side of my property is wooded. Even doing that I've been hit twice. Insurance rate has already gone up after the last disaster.

Sorry for the rant but I'm so upset.




Ugly.  So, if there is evidence that the neighbors trees are unhealthy and at risk of falling and causing damage, I think if you officially notify them of this fact, it may put them on the hook for damages in the future.  


tjohn said:
Ugly.  So, if there is evidence that the neighbors trees are unhealthy and at risk of falling and causing damage, I think if you officially notify them of this fact, it may put them on the hook for damages in the future.  

 This is correct, although getting them to pay in the future is totally dependent on their temperment and your insurance. 


I am so sorry! That really sucks.


So sorry.  Do your neighbors realize that if someone was there they could have been injured or killed. I'm sure they would have liability in that case.


The only thing that I could have done was put it in writing but it is hard to prove to people that the tree is dangerous unless it is completely dead. These top heavy trees topple when there are extended periods of rain. I was trying to be a good neighbor and talk to them about it several times. I spoke to the insurance company in the past and they do little to notify.

I led by example and took down many bit trees over the years. The cost ranged from 2000 to 6000 each few years. When I first moved from the city I saw a few topple so I became diligent about it.

There is another pair that I am pleading about because of size and location. Although apparently healthy, rain and wind will bring at least one of them down onto my house.

I could have been getting in or out of the car.

So I'll consider myself fortunate that I'm still here!



I’m just speechless. (And thankful you’re not hurt)

I think here, if you’re on a heritage register, there’s advice or support for negotiating awkward conversations with difficult neighbours re overhanging trees, fences, insurance, etc. Plus, you’re able to have the bits that overhang your property trimmed, even without the neighbours’ permission (since it’s on your property), and that would somewhat minimise damage on your side.  But obviously, I’m not a lawyer, I’m not there, I really don’t know your situation at all. 


joanne said:
I’m just speechless. (And thankful you’re not hurt)
I think here, if you’re on a heritage register, there’s advice or support for negotiating awkward conversations with difficult neighbours re overhanging trees, fences, insurance, etc. Plus, you’re able to have the bits that overhang your property trimmed, even without the neighbours’ permission (since it’s on your property), and that would somewhat minimise damage on your side.  But obviously, I’m not a lawyer, I’m not there, I really don’t know your situation at all. 

 We can also trim overhang but this tree was on the elevated side of the retaining wall and had no overhanging branches. The worst part is the search for a contractor to frame the roof. The company that does my slate roof repair needs someone to efficiently frame it.

I took @mrincredible 's recommendation and hired him to do a clean out on Monday. But I'm wondering if I should move forward on my own and start calling roofers instead of waiting for the slate roof company.  My poor feral cat Magical is in hiding and appears only late at night now. She lived on my property and had her igloo and assorted beds in the garage. It was more hers than mine. And then of course there were the turkeys in the winter.


I’m so sorry this happened, and thankful you weren’t hurt.  


ETA- Regarding the other trees that you believe pose a threat to your house and are pleading about with your neighbors - please put your concerns in writing to them and attach the pics of the damage to your garage.  


Sweetsnuggles said:
ETA- Regarding the other trees that you believe pose a threat to your house and are pleading about with your neighbors - please put your concerns in writing to them and attach the pics of the damage to your garage.  

 This is critical.  To expand on my earlier comment about neighbors and insurers, I was visiting my mother in her apartment complex.  Earlier that year a tree on neighboring property had dropped branches on her car and broken her windshield.  She notified the owners of the property(certified mail, return receipt)  but received no response and had to fix the glass out of pocket.


Later that day, the entire tree fell down, damaging my car.  I contacted my insurance company and they paid for the repairs, less deductible. I asked them to go after the property owner for the deductible, but they informed me they weren't interested in doing so. When I told them about the letter my mother had sent, they suddenly perked up, asked for a copy and in about 6 months I had my deductible back.  My agent said that if you notify the owner of a tree of a nuisance or hazard(dead tree, dead branches etc.) and they fail to take action in a reasonable amount of time, any damage caused by that tree is considered the result of gross negligence on the tree owner's part.


Komarovsky said:


Sweetsnuggles said:
ETA- Regarding the other trees that you believe pose a threat to your house and are pleading about with your neighbors - please put your concerns in writing to them and attach the pics of the damage to your garage.  
 This is critical.  To expand on my earlier comment about neighbors and insurers, I was visiting my mother in her apartment complex.  Earlier that year a tree on neighboring property had dropped branches on her car and broken her windshield.  She notified the owners of the property(certified mail, return receipt)  but received no response and had to fix the glass out of pocket.

Later that day, the entire tree fell down, damaging my car.  I contacted my insurance company and they paid for the repairs, less deductible. I asked them to go after the property owner for the deductible, but they informed me they weren't interested in doing so. When I told them about the letter my mother had sent, they suddenly perked up, asked for a copy and in about 6 months I had my deductible back.  My agent said that if you notify the owner of a tree of a nuisance or hazard(dead tree, dead branches etc.) and they fail to take action in a reasonable amount of time, any damage caused by that tree is considered the result of gross negligence on the tree owner's part.

This. Cannot stress it enough. A tree fell on my house and the only reason my landlord was not able to go after the tree owner was because he didn’t notify neighbor of his dead overhanging branches prior to the incident. Absentee landlord. Cost him a fortune. 

Prior written notification is everything. 


Ah but the issue is that the trees look fairly healthy. Its the size and the rain soaked soil that causes them to upend. But I guess after this disaster, the insurance company will study their property and decide if they will continue coverage or if it will be raised significantly.

When a tree on my property fell on my house during Sandy, I proved to the company that I was having tree removal done every couple of years. I was covered but they did raise my premium.

I have another tree on my list. They cost thousands to remove.


Need to find someone to frame the roof as my slate guy is taking too long. And as they say on Game of Thrones, "Winter is coming."


tjohn said:


joanne said:
...now I'm wondering about opening that thread for a chuckle.... cheese


Seriously, hope all will be fixed easily, and similar issues won't repeat. Perhaps, just don't have overhanging trees around the garage?? (I know, you can't stipulate what neighbours do on their own property)
 Large trees, even when maintained properly, periodically fall over or drop large branches causing damage.  The only solution is to harvest suburban trees at age 30 or 40 and replace them.

 We have one that's easily over 100. It's doing fine, but we're in a protected valley.


peaceinourtime said:


tjohn said:

joanne said:
...now I'm wondering about opening that thread for a chuckle.... cheese


Seriously, hope all will be fixed easily, and similar issues won't repeat. Perhaps, just don't have overhanging trees around the garage?? (I know, you can't stipulate what neighbours do on their own property)
 Large trees, even when maintained properly, periodically fall over or drop large branches causing damage.  The only solution is to harvest suburban trees at age 30 or 40 and replace them.
 We have one that's easily over 100. It's doing fine, but we're in a protected valley.

 I have noticed that these large, old trees are often doing fine until they aren't.


tjohn said:


peaceinourtime said:

tjohn said:

joanne said:
...now I'm wondering about opening that thread for a chuckle.... cheese


Seriously, hope all will be fixed easily, and similar issues won't repeat. Perhaps, just don't have overhanging trees around the garage?? (I know, you can't stipulate what neighbours do on their own property)
 Large trees, even when maintained properly, periodically fall over or drop large branches causing damage.  The only solution is to harvest suburban trees at age 30 or 40 and replace them.
 We have one that's easily over 100. It's doing fine, but we're in a protected valley.
 I have noticed that these large, old trees are often doing fine until they aren't.

 I said something like that to my neighbor today. I'm flipped out as there is another one of their trees precariously poised to fall into one of my bedrooms with a glass skylight. I pointed out that if that tree falls, I'll probably be killed. Too much?


Please send the neighbor a certified letter outlining your concerns.  First, that will help with insurance coverage and, second, kit may stimulate your neighbor to have the trees inspected and trimmed or removed.  



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