We're property damage attorneys for South Carolina homeowners whose roof took a tree or a heavy limb. We read the policy and the adjuster's estimate on your tree damage insurance claim, from the rafters to the rooms underneath, and we press the insurer on what it left out.
A tree strike is rarely just a roofing job. The trunk breaks what holds the roof up, rain follows it in, and each part of the loss usually sits under its own section of the policy.
Before you signA release, or a check described as full and final payment, can affect what you can still recover. Send it to us first. The review is free.
What we handle
From Charleston, we handle tree claims across South Carolina: live oaks and pines down in a Lowcountry hurricane, hardwoods across the Upstate, and limbs that give way in a summer thunderstorm.
The first estimate often prices shingles and a few sheets of decking. A trunk that lands on a house can also crack rafters and shift walls, so we compare the adjuster's scope with what an engineer or roofer actually finds.
It usually doesn't matter whose yard the tree grew in. Damage to your home is generally a claim on your own homeowners policy first. Your insurer can decide later whether to seek repayment from the neighbor's side, and that question shouldn't hold up your repairs.
Some claim letters point to rot, age or poor upkeep. A tree's condition matters mostly to whether a neighbor could be responsible. It is not usually a reason for your own policy to refuse damage from a tree that fell on the house. We read the letter against the exclusion it cites.
Helene's winds on September 27, 2024 put trees on homes from Aiken to Greenville and Spartanburg. Tornadoes spun off by Isaias crossed Aiken, Barnwell and Allendale counties on October 10, 2026, and Winter Storm Fern iced the Upstate in late January 2026. If a claim from one of those storms is still open or was paid short, we can review it.
Policies generally expect you to protect the house from more damage, and reasonable costs to tarp the roof or board up an opening are often part of the claim. Keep the receipts and take photos before and after the tarp goes on.
S.C. Code § 38-59-40 provides that a court may award attorney's fees — capped at one-third of the judgment — set within a reasonableness standard, not automatic and not the policyholder's full fees. South Carolina recognizes common-law bad faith through the Tyger River line of cases, which can carry consequential and potentially punitive damages when an insurer's conduct meets the bad-faith standard.
How it works
Most clients are surprised how little they have to do once we're involved.
Free, confidential conversation. Bring your policy and any letters from the insurer if you have them.
We send our own adjusters and engineers to document the real scope of damage, often the moment things change.
We present the carrier with a documented demand. Many cases resolve here without ever going to court.
If they still won't pay fairly, we file suit in SC court, with the resources to take it all the way.
Common questions
Usually yours, at least to start. A homeowners policy generally covers a tree that falls on the house when the cause is one the policy covers, such as wind, no matter where the tree stood. If the neighbor was at fault, your insurer may try to recover from the neighbor's insurer afterward. Your claim doesn't have to wait for that.
Often, when the tree hit the house or another covered structure. Many policies cap removal at a set amount per tree and per loss, and a tree that fell in the yard without hitting anything is usually limited or left out. It depends on the policy, so we read yours.
Not on that alone, in most cases. Insurers sometimes cite wear, rot or lack of maintenance, but damage to the house from a tree that came down is usually treated as a sudden loss. Whether an exclusion really applies depends on the policy language and the facts. Send us the letter.
Ask for the estimate in writing and compare it room by room. Ceilings, insulation, wiring, flooring and belongings are usually separate lines, and they're easy to miss on a first visit. We can review the estimate and ask the insurer to reopen what it skipped.
No. A tree on a car is an auto claim, usually under the comprehensive part of the auto policy. We don't handle car or auto accident claims. If the same tree also hit your house, garage or fence, we can help with that part.
No fee unless we win. We walk you through exactly how fees and case costs work before you sign anything. The first review is free.
Ready to talk?
Call (844) 776-7364 or send the form for a free review of your South Carolina claim.
