Who is right?

debodun

debodun

SF VIP
Location
way upstate in New York, USA
During a high wind storm, a segment of Neighbor A's wooden stockade fence blows over onto Neighbor B's house, causing slight damage. Neighbor B confronts Neighbor A saying if Neighbor A pays the costs of repairing the damage, there's no reason for a lawsuit. Neighbor A says "not responsible for an act of nature". Is Neighbor A correct?
 

No. Neighbour A should have household insurance to cover such eventuality.

If neighbour A has no household insurance then sue him.

The insurance loss adjuster might claim that the fence had not been adequately maintained and refuse to pay the total cost if it could be proved but that is a separate matter.
 
Probably, in theory and as a technicality, A is right. But then, as a good neighbor I would offer to pay, or at least see if A's homeowners will pay. Part of being a good neighbor.
 

I'm pretty sure, if a neighbor's *tree* falls on your property and does damage, it is your insurance that should cover it, not the neighbor's. Don't know about fences, though.
 
Either way, a lawsuit for "minor damage" is silly and a big fat waste of time and money. Probably cost more to file the lawsuit than it would to fix whatever it is. Not to mention how much in attorneys' fees everybody will rack up -- the rock bottom hourly rate around here (and we are a poor area) is $150 per hour. Plus the fact that, with luck, maybe in two or three years the courts would get around to hearing the case. Everybody nowdays thinks they'll just sue for the smallest stuff and come out right away with a whole buncha money -- big fat myth.

Rather than get into all that, if it were my fault by law and wasn't a huge amount to fix, I'd just pay the repairs rather than get into long drawn out litigation.
 
NancyNGA said:
I'm pretty sure, if a neighbor's *tree* falls on your property and does damage, it is your insurance that should cover it, not the neighbor's. Don't know about fences, though.
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If it was neglect, then the neighbor would be at fault. Like if it was a rotten tree they should have removed instead of a healthy tree that fell because of something that could not have been prevented.
 
nvtribefan said:
Your homeowners policy would pay for repairs to your damaged home, less the deductible, of course.
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And next year the premium would rocket. Sue the neighbour. Let their homeowners insurance pay out and let their premium rocket. If they do not have insurance then tough luck on them. They should have. For me its a no brained.
 
If neighbor's A's fence was in disrepair and neighbor B warned him in writing to fix it, then neighbor A is liable because he was negligent. If he refuses to pay or refuses to put in a claim with his homeowner's insurance B can-

file a claim with A's insurance if it's known who it is or, if wind is a named peril that B's policy states is covered for the property, B can have his own insurance cover the damage, less the deductible.

B's insurance company will then subrogate against A's insurance company to recover their loss and B's deductible. That can take days, weeks or even months.

Unless B has a special endorsement to his policy, they will take off for depreciation, but many insurer's today automatically include the Replacement Cost endorsement to their policies.

If neighbor A's fence was NOT in disrepair and the wind just blew it into B's house, A is not liable; he was not negligent consciously or unconsciously. B would look to his own insurance company for coverage and B's premium's will NOT skyrocket next term. This is homeowner's insurance not auto, and this case is no one's fault.

This why people have insurance; so there is no need to sue.

Aeron, if there is insurance coverage, you can't sue for anything.
 
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If there is damage caused by a third party then you CAN sue the third party irrespective of your own insurance cover. At least that's how it works in Europe.
 
I guess I have thought wrong all these years. I thought if a neighbor's tree (and/or fence) falls on your property, they are liable. Sort of thought of it as "their" property that did damage to "your" property.
 
aeron said:
If there is damage caused by a third party then you CAN sue the third party irrespective of your own insurance cover. At least that's how it works in Europe.
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"Caused by" was the deciding factor when my insurance agent explained it to me years ago when a neighbor's tree fell on my home during a storm with high winds. Unless I wanted to, and could prove that the tree was damaged and should have been previously removed by my neighbor, then my insurance covered it because it was "caused by" the storm and not by my neighbor's neglect.
 
Neighbor A has the responsibility to make neighbor B "whole"(compensated for loss). Homeowners insurance should take care of this, without need for lawsuit.
 
tnthomas said:
Neighbor A has the responsibility to make neighbor B "whole"(compensated for loss). Homeowners insurance should take care of this, without need for lawsuit.
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Only if Neighbor A was negligent. If A was not negligent, then B's insurance pays.

https://www.allstate.com/tools-and-resources/home-insurance/tree-falls-on-house.aspx

Q: What happens if the tree was on my neighbor's property?

A: If your home is damaged by your neighbor's tree, the III says you'll typically find that your homeowners insurance may help pay to repair the damage to your house (or other structure, if the tree falls on your fence, for example).

Q: Am I responsible if a tree from my property damages my neighbor's property?

A: You're typically only considered responsible if neglect on your part was a contributing factor to the tree's demise. If not — say a storm knocked your healthy tree onto your neighbor's house — your neighbor will likely have to file a claim through his or her own insurance.
 
RadishRose said:
Only if Neighbor A was negligent. If A was not negligent, then B's insurance pays.

https://www.allstate.com/tools-and-resources/home-insurance/tree-falls-on-house.aspx

Q: What happens if the tree was on my neighbor's property?

A: If your home is damaged by your neighbor's tree, the III says you'll typically find that your homeowners insurance may help pay to repair the damage to your house (or other structure, if the tree falls on your fence, for example).

Q: Am I responsible if a tree from my property damages my neighbor's property?

A: You're typically only considered responsible if neglect on your part was a contributing factor to the tree's demise. If not — say a storm knocked your healthy tree onto your neighbor's house — your neighbor will likely have to file a claim through his or her own insurance.
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Yes, and these rules may vary from state to state.
 

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