A tree crashing into your living room or any room for that matter would certainly be a horrifying and dangerous experience. Luckily, if done right there is LITTLE risk involved in tree removal. It’s easy to check into whether a tree service company is licensed and insured to be performing tree removal. If you are doing this yourself and are not a trained arborist then the risk of personal injury and/or property damage greatly increases. Luckily, most people realize tree removal is a job for professionals. When I had a tree removed on the side of my house years back the company and professionals they sent out left me feeling very comfortable about the process. Here are some things to look for to ensure your tree removal goes according to plan.
Commercial Arborist License
The arborist and company performing the tree removal service should be licensed through their state. An arborist is a professional who improves the condition of fruit, shade, or ornamental trees by feeding or fertilizing, or by pruning, trimming, bracing, treating cavities or other methods of improving tree conditions, or protecting trees from damage from insects or diseases or curing these conditions by spraying or any other method. All states should have some sort of exam professionals must pass.
Here is an example of state requirements.
International Society of Arboriculture
Not all tree service companies and professionals need to be or are members of the ISA. Still if you’d like some sort of industry industry standard backing up the tree removal then you’ll want to visit the ISAs website and find a local ISA chapter in your area. The local chapter can provide you with a list of arborists in your area. You can also find a great deal of information on the profession from the ISA’s website. Check them out.
Agreeing to Tree Removal
Be sure a contract, work order, or some other legally binding contract is signed between you and the tree service company. This document should explain the following and be signed by both parties.
- Exactly what work will be done. This should state which tree or trees is to be worked on and exactly what will be done.
- When the work will start and when the work will end. This should include a start date/time and an end date/time.
- What type of cleanup work will be done afterwards. Will the tree be left on your property (often done for firewood or wood chipping)? What about the branches and leaves?
- The total dollar amount that you will be charged.
