Does My Home Insurance Cover Damage From a Neighbour's Tree in Ontario?

Whether your home insurance covers damage from a neighbour's tree depends on your policy wording, so call your insurer or broker and read the policy before you decide anything. Insurance is a contract, and the terms on deductibles and what counts as covered damage differ between policies.

Separately, you may have a claim against the neighbour. Private nuisance is an act that indirectly causes physical injury to land, or substantially interferes with its use or enjoyment, where the injury or interference is unreasonable in light of all the surrounding circumstances. Nuisance looks at the effect on your property, not at whether the neighbour was careless.

Time and ownership matter. The basic limitation period is two years from the day the claim was discovered. Every tree whose trunk is growing on the boundary between adjoining lands is the common property of the owners of the adjoining lands. Before any tree is cut, check your municipal tree by-law, which may require a permit to injure or destroy trees. Report the damage to your insurer promptly, and keep photos, repair quotes and all correspondence. A lawyer can help you weigh a claim against the neighbour.