How to Choose a Good Tree Care Company
How hard can it be to cut down a tree? If you don’t have the right tools and experience, harder than you’d think. How hard can it be to choose a tree service in Springfield IL? As it turns out, correctly pruning garden trees and grinding stumps can be more complicated than the average homeowner can handle. It is a wise decision to hand over anything involving tree overgrowth, rot, and storm damage to a professional tree surgeon and arborist.
How does one go about finding the perfect tree company for the job? It is a good idea to start with asking your friends or neighbors if they can recommend anyone with whom they have a had a pleasant experience. Word of mouth is one of the best ways to gauge a tree company’s reputation.
Tree Emergencies
You don’t have to wait for a tree emergency to seek out a reputable arborist either. Do your research before storm season or overgrowth happens. This way, you will have a number of a good tree surgeons on your contact list on whom you have already done your due diligence.
First-time homeowners will benefit from reading through these easy-to-follow tips when checking a tree company’s credentials. If you are a long-time homeowner who has had an unpleasant experience with an unscrupulous tree surgeon before, it won’t hurt to read these helpful hints, too.
- Ask About Licensing & Insurance
Don’t be afraid to demand from any tree service their proof of insurance. The way to ensure it is genuine is for the insurance company itself to send you the paperwork. Unfortunately, not all tree services are legitimate, and some might doctor up a false certificate to fool an unsuspecting customer.
Without the proper licensing and insurance, if injury or damage to your property occurs during the project’s commission, you will be liable. This will be quite a consideration if a tree on your property falls over into your neighbor’s yard… or onto their car. Read the insurance details carefully to check it they cover every reasonable possibility of disaster.
- Outstanding Reputation
When tree surgeons are proud of their expertise and customer service, they will be associated with organizations that monitor the industry’s standards such as the Tree Care Industry Association. Besides having a relationship of good standing with your local Better Business Bureau, a tree company’s reputation rating can also be discovered from reading their online reviews.
More proof of a tree service’s reliability will be whether they have a list of references on call if the customer is seeking further help in deciding. A good rule of thumb is that the more expensive the project, the more time you should spend on research.
- Handles Domestic & Business Projects
A well-respected tree feller and arborist will tackle domestic and municipal projects as part of their job description. A warning sign that a tree service is not all that they claim to be is if they have no credentials more than a few years old and no municipal or business experience. If they charge ridiculously low prices, remember that you’ll likely get what you pay for.
At the other end of the spectrum, don’t be misled by an over-priced tree contractor who claims that an inflated estimate is in anyway offering a better service. Compare all offers to the market average.
- Double-Check Your Policy
A thorough read-through of your homeowner’s insurance can be very persuasive when deciding whether to ask a tree care company to look over the vegetation in your yard. According to the Insurance Information Institute, you will have to pay your home insurance deductibles before your insurance company will cover any losses.
Certain provisos are attached to this. For example, insurance will pay only if a healthy tree falls due to perils like storm damage, not neglect or disease. Look carefully at your policy or check with the insurance agent to hear how much coverage you have before stormy weather arrives. Sometimes a policy does not cover the removal of a tree or any other debris that has fallen but not caused any damage.
- Get Three Quotes
When it comes to selecting a service for tree pruning and maintenance, stump grinding, and debris removal, you must try to get three different quotes from companies closest to you. Looking further afield than your Springfield locality in the hope of getting a cheaper quote will often lead to an inflated quote or an ignored request.
Don’t be shy in requesting that the company expert come and see the work that needs to be done. You can get a very good picture of how a business relationship is going to play out after meeting the company representative in person. It is better to spend the time and allow the arborist to see firsthand and hear what you want to be done, and for you to hear their recommendations.
Be reasonable with the expectation of a face-to-face after a storm has passed, as the company will be swamped with similar requests. This why it is highly recommended for you to build up a relationship with a tree company before necessity forces a call-out.
- Never Pay Upfront
Last but not least, never pay for a tree service before the job has been completed in its entirety. Once you build up a good relationship with your friendly neighborhood tree surgeon, they will simply forward a bill for you to settle after the job has been finished.
As an example, if the job is stump grinding and removal, don’t pay until the removal part of the job has happened. If the tree service is less than reputable, they may try to leave the job after the stump has been ground and dug up, leaving you with a giant tree stump lying in your yard.
There are no drawbacks when it comes to building up a solid relationship with a five-star tree surgeon and arborist. They will be there to service your tree felling and pruning needs, come rain or shine, and are only a phone call away.
A preemptive striking down of a rotten tree and the removal of all the debris can really open up your yard and clear the way for new plantings. It will save you in the long run from the dangers of falling branches and trees; in the hands of an expert, maintaining the foliage in your garden will pay dividends in the long term.
