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Oak tree damaged. What's it worth?


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Had a tenant order a mattress. Delivery guys were told not to attempt going down a narrow, tree-lined, drive with their massive truck. They did it anyway and took out a mature oak tree. Tree is broken at trunk and completely down. I'm trying to figure out what to ask for from these dumbasses. Obviously the cost to remove the downed tree and replant a new oak, but there is no buying a tree of the size comparable to what was destroyed. Is there some way to put a value on the tree?

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i was thinking the same thing about photos. hopefully you also have other photos of the tree before it was damaged. if not, look for satellite and street view photos.

depending upon the size, species, and age, it might be worth way more than you think. if that's the case, it may be time to get a lawyer.

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You can legally recover the ornamental value of a lost tree, but unless these guys (and their company's insurance co.) are just dying to do the right thing, it's going to cost you in legal and expert fees.

Edited by dcbc
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1 hour ago, NeverMarryAStripper said:

Sue them for $10,000 in small claims court. Get a default judgement when they ignore you. Have a repo man repo their truck. Drive their truck through the front door of their store.

trust this man, he's pre-law.

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22 hours ago, Texaus said:

Had a tenant order a mattress. Delivery guys were told not to attempt going down a narrow, tree-lined, drive with their massive truck. They did it anyway and took out a mature oak tree. Tree is broken at trunk and completely down. I'm trying to figure out what to ask for from these dumbasses. Obviously the cost to remove the downed tree and replant a new oak, but there is no buying a tree of the size comparable to what was destroyed. Is there some way to put a value on the tree?

Sounds like they went down a public street in a municipality that didn't take adequate measures to allow for commercial traffic.

 

Good luck.

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Sounds like they went down a public street in a municipality that didn't take adequate measures to allow for commercial traffic.
 
Good luck.

No, private drive on 6 acres. Any moron would easily be able to see it was a bad idea to attempt and they were cautioned by my tenant not to do it beforehand. I wasn’t present, just got the phone call after the fact.
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Just now, Texaus said:


No, private drive on 6 acres. Any moron would easily be able to see it was a bad idea to attempt and they were cautioned by my tenant not to do it beforehand. I wasn’t present, just got the phone call after the fact.

I don't know how much of a duty is created by a tenant "cautioning" the driver.

 

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One of my favorite quirks of Texas law, you can recover for the intrinsic value of trees. So not just what it costs to replace them, but also just some money because trees are nice. 

You will also never recover much from some dumb shit moving company so don't waste your time. 

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Please go out and paint the breach. I’d buy five or six cans and just drench it.  Oak wilt is still active in July...and what you described is an ideal target for them 

don’t let this unfortunate occurrence decimate the rest of your street.  

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Dude, they move some pretty damned big oak trees.  Good luck getting them to pay for it



I know there’s a better pic somewhere down one of the interstates with a massive oak, but yeah.

2772b5543efa732259c75b71f87edc6c.jpg

My folks live out in the country, and about 12-15 several hundred year oaks on their place. Majestic trees.


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5 hours ago, Hank Scorpio said:

One of my favorite quirks of Texas law, you can recover for the intrinsic value of trees. So not just what it costs to replace them, but also just some money because trees are nice. 

 

Yep.  The supremes revisited this topic pretty enthusiastically a few years ago. 

449 S.W.3d 474

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Your answer will depend entirely on what you mean by a "mature" Oak tree. There's a big difference between a 20 year old mature tree and a 70 year old one. 

For property value, I've always heard common mature Oak trees were valued up to $10k. But that can vary significantly in either direction. I was looking at trees a few years ago, and I was quoted around $4.5k to have something like a 30' Oak with a 12" caliper brought in. Lots of places online that could give you a quote. Add that price, the cost of removal, and another few grand for your troubles, and send them a demand letter. Unless you used some tiny local outfit, they surely have some sort of insurance for property damage. 

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