Conifers causing subsidence - will it ever end?

julie1075

Hello,

My apologies if this is in the wrong place but I desperately need some advice.

I received a letter yesterday from my neighbours' insurance company saying my conifers may have added to the subsidence damage to her home and could I remove them. Now this an expensive venture but I called my tree man and he has removed 3 of the 5 they want removed and is coming back at the end of September to remove the other 2 (when I will have saved up enough to pay him).

My question is, is this the end of it or will they now want to charge me for any repairs to the house? I only work 16 hours a week and can just about get by so any extra cost will hit me hard. I checked my insurance and although I seem to be covered for liability the excess is £1000, which is really giving me sleepless nights.

Any advice would be welcome. I tried a legal helpline that I get with the insurance but she was worse than useless.

Many thanks in advance.

Oscar_The_Grouch

Hi there

Firstly, the £1,000 excess is for you making a claim for damage to YOUR home due to subsidence. The case you are talking about is damage to someone elses home by trees on your property and that comes under LIABILITY where generally there is £0 excess. So forget the £1,000; you won't have to pay it.

Moving on to the trees, there are 2 things you need to be aware of: The ABI Tree Root Agreement and the law of Tort.

Law of Tort.
Essentially, what has happened here is your tree roots have caused damage to your neighbour's property (allegedly). In order for you to be liable for that damage, your neighbour (through their loss adjuster and insurer) will have to show that you were aware that tree roots could cause damage, that you were aware your trees were within a distance that could influence the home and that knowing all this, you took no action to prevent the trees causing damage. In other words, they have to show that you were in some way negligent.

ABI Tree Root Agreement
This is an extension to the ABI Domestic Subsidence Agreement. It basically says "I won't sue your policyholder for damage caused by tree roots to my home".

What all the above means is that you cannot be found liable for the damage because you have done nothing wrong and even if you could be taken to court over the damage, there is an agreement between insurers that says they won't do this anyway!! Forget about it and start sleeping better!!!!!

Finally, I think you have been very kind in removing the trees. I work for an insurance company where if there is tree removal required, the company pays for it; not the individual. If I were you, I would send a copy of the bill to the loss adjuster (the chap that wrote to you) and say you removed the trees out of consideration for your neighbours, but you do not feel you should be financially prejudiced for something where they have not provided any evidence that would stand up in a court of law confirming that your trees were the sole cause of ground movement. As a result, you expect them to reimburse you for the costs you have incurred.

My company would pay you without batting an eyelid.

All the best.

julie1075

Many thanks for your advice. You are, of course, correct about the excess. I was reading it very quickly in distress, now I am a little calmer I can see there is no excess.
I don't think I will pursue the costs of removing the trees. I just want the episode to be over. I feel that if I get pushy then they may come back with more ammunition. But it did make me feel a lot better and I will keep it as a back up plan if they start to get nasty about the repairs.
Once again, thank you for your advice. It's nice to know I have a big family here to give help when needed. xxx