Storm damage to trees is the most common emergency call we get, and the most common place people make things worse. Here is the order of operations.
First: make it safe, not tidy
- Keep people and pets away from the damaged tree and anything it is resting on. A split limb can settle or fall further at any time.
- Do not walk under it to take photos or inspect it, and do not let children play near it.
- If it is on a building, car or power line, do not try to move it. If a power line is involved, call the electricity network first (in County Durham that is Northern Powergrid, 105).
- If the tree is blocking a road, report it to Durham County Council’s highways team. It is usually their responsibility to clear the carriageway.
- Only then think about the tree itself.
What not to do
- Do not pull a fallen tree with a car or 4x4. The tree can spring back, and the tension is dangerous. This is how people get hurt after storms.
- Do not cut the trunk while it is under load. A tree resting on a roof or fence is under enormous tension. Cutting the wrong side makes it kick, roll or drop. This is genuinely dangerous and is the main reason we use rigging.
- Do not cut branches that are touching a power line, ever. That is a network job.
- Do not accept the first “it has to come down” verdict if the tree is not actually dangerous. We assess damaged trees properly and will tell you if it can be saved with a crown reduction or cable work.
What the emergency call looks like
When you call about storm damage, tell us:
- Whether the tree or a branch is on a building, car or path
- Whether anything is blocking access
- Whether any power lines are involved
- Roughly how big the tree or limb is
We prioritise callouts where the tree is on or near something. A limb hanging in the canopy over a drive is dealt with before a tree that has fallen into an open garden with nothing under it.
After the emergency
- Check for other damage. A tree that lost one limb in the storm may have cracked other limbs. We look for splits, bark damage and leaning while we are on site.
- Assess whether the tree can be kept. Not every storm-damaged tree needs to come down. If the structural damage is limited, a crown reduction and deadwooding can often keep a tree safe for years.
- Think about prevention. Trees with heavy canopies, dense crowns or included bark (V-shaped forks) are the ones that fail in storms. Regular crown reduction and deadwooding is cheaper than the removal after a storm.
Insurance
If the tree has damaged your property, your buildings or contents insurance may cover the removal. We provide a written report of what happened and what we did, which makes claims straightforward. If a neighbour’s tree has fallen onto your property, it is usually your insurance that deals with it, not theirs.
Storm damage is prioritised across County Durham. Send us the details and tell us what has happened; we will tell you how quickly we can get to you.