Insurance, paperwork and paying for tree work

Our insurance — and why there's no license

South Carolina has no statewide tree-service license — no exam, no registration, no bond — which is why the Forestry Commission's own hiring guide tells homeowners to look for ISA certification and to ask for certificates of liability and workers' compensation insurance and phone the insurer to confirm them. The only thing standing between you and a lawsuit when a climber falls or a limb goes through the neighbor's roof is the company's insurance. Crews working through Myrtle Beach Tree Co. carry general liability and workers' compensation, and the certificate is available before anyone climbs; call the agent named on it if you want to be sure. Insist on the same from anyone else who quotes you. Surfside Beach requires a licensed, bonded, insured company for permitted removals; the Town of Pawleys Island can bar a contractor from the island; and in Myrtle Beach the tree cutter is liable alongside the owner for an unpermitted removal — so the company's standing with the towns is part of what you're hiring.

Your homeowners insurance

A standard homeowners policy covers damage a falling tree does to covered structures — the house, the garage, a fence if it's on the policy — and the cost of removing the tree from that structure, as part of the loss. Most policies also pay a small amount, typically $500 to $1,000, to remove a tree that fell without hitting anything if it blocks a driveway or a ramp. What they don't cover: removing a standing tree, dead or alive, because it might fall; preventive pruning; stump grinding; or a tree that fell and hit nothing and isn't blocking anything. Coastal South Carolina policies carry a separate named-storm or hurricane deductible, usually a percentage of the dwelling coverage, so a single tree on a roof may or may not clear it.

After a storm: photograph everything before anyone cuts, keep the emergency-removal invoice separate (it's mitigation), and file the claim yourself. We provide dated photos and itemized invoices; we don't negotiate claims. If a neighbor's tree falls on your house, your policy generally pays and the neighbor's isn't involved unless they'd been notified the tree was dangerous — South Carolina treats a healthy tree in a storm as an act of God and a neglected dead one as negligence — which is one reason to put a concern about a neighbor's dead tree in writing.

Paying for it

Most residential jobs are paid on completion by card, check or bank transfer — no deposit until the written price is approved and the work is scheduled. Permit fees and mitigation (Myrtle Beach's $400-per-tree fee-in-lieu, North Myrtle Beach's $300 per caliper inch, Horry County's $150–$300 per replacement tree) are the owner's and are shown in the price. Emergency work after a storm carries a surcharge stated before the crew is dispatched. For a big removal you didn't plan on — a crane job, a whole-lot cleanup — we can connect you with third-party financing offering fixed monthly payments, applied for online in a few minutes with no effect on your credit to check the rate; we don't lend money ourselves and we don't mark up the financing.

Reports and letters

When a town, a lender, a buyer, an HOA or a carrier wants a written opinion on a tree — risk, condition, whether it qualifies for removal under the ordinance — our arborist writes it, with measurements and photos. A hazard assessment or condition report is $150–$350, credited toward any work we do. We write them only when the tree meets the standard; the towns know which arborists write to order, and a letter that doesn't hold up gets the removal denied and the owner fined.