If a large limb breaks off of your neighbor’s tree during a storm and hits your house causing damage, you cannot sue your neighbor to recover the damages. This often seems contradictory to what many people feel should be someone else’s responsibility. Some people initially want to try though considering the damage was caused by the neighbor’s tree. Unless your neighbor was negligent in refusing to cut down a dying tree, you will be stuck filing a claim against your home insurance policy for any damages that were a result. The same would be true if the tree limb struck your car. Your car insurance policy would cover the damages, not your neighbor’s insurance.

The term “Act of God” is not specifically mentioned in most homeowners insurance policies although events associated with it are typically covered. Events such as wind, hail, lightning, and other natural disasters are specifically listed in homeowners insurance policies. But, events such as floods and earthquakes are specifically excluded. Despite being acts of God, these events need their own separate insurance policies in order to cover your home.

You cannot sue others for damages caused by an act of God unless there is significant negligence by a person that also contributed to the damage. While it may sound like a religious term, an act of God is used in the insurance industry to describe any event that is not controlled by humans. Acts of God are considered to be things such as windstorms, tornados, floods, and typically other natural disasters that can cause damage to homes. No one can be held responsible for damages that were caused by the weather or natural disasters. They are naturally occurring events that cannot be planned for or prevented by humans hence the name acts of God.

However, there are ways that you may find yourself paying for an act of God. You may be financially liable for damages to other people’s property even if the damage was a result of an act of God if your negligence leads to the damage. Insurance companies and the law expect homeowners and American citizens to act in a reasonable manner to protect against damage and loss. Refusing to cut down a dying tree that later falls on someone’s house is just one example of negligence where you could find yourself facing liability despite the event being an act of God. You are expected to take reasonable care to insure that accidents like that do not happen.