Emergency tree removal in Houston usually starts with a loud crack in the middle of a storm and a tree where it should not be: through the roof, across a car, blocking the only way out of the driveway or tangled in the line to the house. The first hour is about keeping people safe and getting the right calls made in the right order. The tree itself can wait until the area is safe.
Tree Service Houston TX is a free phone line, not a tree company. When you call (346) 680-8916, an automated assistant takes your details and transfers you to an independent, locally owned tree service company that serves your part of the Houston area. That company looks at the damage, quotes its own price and does the work.
The first hour after a tree comes down
Do these in order. None of them involves touching the tree.
- Check on peopleIf anyone is hurt or trapped, call 911 right away.
- Look for wires before you walk outA downed line can be silent and still carry current. CenterPoint Energy tells people to stay at least 35 feet away, to call 911, and to report the line at 713-207-2222.
- Keep everyone backKeep children, pets and neighbors away from the tree, the roof edge and any hanging limbs. Broken limbs caught in a canopy can drop without warning.
- Get out of a damaged roomIf a trunk or big limb has come through the roof or a wall, leave that part of the house until someone qualified has looked at it.
- Photograph everythingThe Texas Department of Insurance says to take photos and video of the damage before the tree is moved or repairs begin.
- Call your insurance companyReport the claim as soon as you can and keep a record of everyone you talk to.
- Then call for the treeCall the free line and describe exactly where the tree is and what it is resting on.
How emergency tree removal is handled
A tree resting on a house is a loaded structure. Part of its weight is on the roof framing and part is still on the root plate or the broken trunk, and cutting in the wrong place can drop the rest of it through the ceiling. That is why a careful company plans the removal before any saw runs. On a call like this, expect the company to ask what the tree is touching, how big the trunk is, whether a line is involved and how close a truck can get.
Tree on the house
The usual approach is to take the weight off in stages, working from the top, with each piece lowered or lifted clear. When a large trunk lies across the roof with no room to lower it, a crane removal can lift sections straight off the house instead of dragging them across shingles. Once the tree is off, the roof opening still needs to be covered. Tarping and roof repair are roofing work, so ask whether the tree company does it or whether you need a roofer. TDI tells homeowners to make temporary repairs to stop more damage, to save the receipts and to hold off on permanent repairs until the adjuster has seen the damage.
Tree on a car or across the driveway
Ask the company how it plans to take the weight off the car rather than letting a cut trunk drop onto it, and photograph the car before anything moves. Call your auto insurer about the car as well as your home insurer about the property. If a trunk across the driveway is the only way in or out for someone who needs medical care, say so on the call so the company knows how urgent it is.
Tree in a line, or a line in the tree
If a tree is resting on any wire, from the service drop to your house to the big lines along the street, a tree company should not touch it until the utility has made it safe. CenterPoint warns that lines do not always spark or hum when they are live. Report it, wait, and let the company you call know a line is involved so it does not show up expecting an ordinary job.
Houston storms that brought trees down
The Houston area does not need a major hurricane to lose a lot of trees. Several recent storms show how different kinds of weather cause different kinds of tree damage.
| Storm | What happened |
|---|---|
| Hurricane Ike, September 13, 2008 | The National Weather Service records landfall near Galveston as a Category 2 hurricane with 110 mph winds. Ike was very large, with tropical storm force winds spanning about 425 miles. The University of Houston reported its main campus lost about 25 to 30 percent of its trees. |
| Hurricane Harvey, August 2017 | Harvey's harm in Houston was mainly water. The storm stalled over Southeast Texas, and the National Weather Service reports 36 to 48 inches of rain in the Houston metro area, with record flood stages on many Harris County gauges. |
| Winter storm, February 2021 | A long hard freeze left many Texas trees bare into spring. The Texas A&M Forest Service asked Texans to wait until mid-July before cutting down trees that had not leafed out, because many recovered. |
| Derecho, May 16, 2024 | A fast line of thunderstorms tore through the city. National Weather Service damage surveys estimated winds near 100 mph in parts of downtown, and falling trees were blamed for at least two deaths. |
| Hurricane Beryl, July 8, 2024 | Beryl came ashore as a Category 1 hurricane southwest of Houston and its center passed over the west side of the metro area. CenterPoint said about 2.26 million of its customers lost power, and restoring it was slowed by trees and limbs that had fallen into lines and poles. |
The lesson from the freeze is worth repeating: a tree that looks dead after a freeze is not always a removal. Unless it is broken, leaning on something or splitting, it can be worth having an arborist assessment before you pay to take it down.
Insurance basics from the Texas Department of Insurance
Every policy is different, so read yours. These are the general patterns TDI describes.
Usually covered
- Removing a tree that a covered peril, such as wind, made fall on and damage the house or another covered structure
- On many policies, removing a storm-felled tree that blocks the driveway
- Reasonable temporary repairs that stop more damage, with receipts
Often limited or not covered
- Trees and limbs that fall only in the yard
- Removal costs beyond the dollar limit your policy sets for tree removal
- A neighbor's policy paying for their tree on your house, unless the neighbor was at fault
Storm chasers and door-to-door crews
After a big Houston storm, trucks show up in neighborhoods offering to clear trees on the spot. Some are honest. Some take a deposit and disappear, or do the job with no insurance at all. Texas agencies give clear advice for this moment.
Do
- Get the bid in writing with the company's name, phone number and address, as TDI recommends
- Use local companies when you can and compare more than one bid
- Ask for a certificate of insurance sent by the company's insurance agent
- Keep copies of every document and photo
Do not
- Pay in full up front, or hand over a large cash deposit
- Accept an offer to waive or rebate your deductible, which TDI says state law makes illegal
- Make your final payment before the job is finished
If you think you have been scammed or price gouged after a disaster, the Office of the Texas Attorney General takes consumer complaints at 1-800-621-0508.
Check the company yourself. Texas has no state license for tree trimming or tree removal, so a business card proves very little. Ask the company for a certificate of general liability insurance sent by its insurance agent, proof of workers' compensation coverage, and the ISA certification number of its arborist. A company that sprays or injects trees for hire needs a pesticide license from the Texas Department of Agriculture or its Structural Pest Control Service. You can confirm a certification with the ISA's credential lookup (opens in a new tab).
What to tell the company on the phone
A clear description helps the company decide what crew and equipment to bring. Before you call, note:
- What the tree is resting on: roof, car, fence, line, street
- Roughly how tall the tree was and how thick the trunk is
- Whether the house is open to the weather
- Whether a truck can reach the tree from the street or driveway
- Whether CenterPoint has already been called about a line
- Whether your insurance claim has been opened
Ask the company to put the price and the scope in writing, including whether it hauls away the wood or leaves it at the curb. The debris removal page explains what the City of Houston will and will not pick up after a storm, and the tree removal cost guide covers what moves the price of emergency work.
Tree on the house or the car? Once everyone is safe and any line is reported, call and describe it. The company you are put through to looks at the damage and tells you its price before work starts.
How an emergency call works
- Call any hourAn automated assistant answers (346) 680-8916 and asks what kind of tree work you need.
- Describe the jobGive your name, a callback number, your city or ZIP and what the tree is doing, including anything on a roof, a car or a line.
- Get put throughThe call goes to an independent, locally owned tree service company, which hears a short summary before it picks up.
- Deal with them directlyThat company looks at the tree, quotes, does the work and is paid by you. If it cannot answer, it gets your details to call back.
How this line works: Tree Service Houston TX is a free phone line, not a tree service company. It does not trim, remove, quote or schedule tree work and holds no license or arborist certification. Calls are transferred to independent, locally owned tree service companies in the Houston area. Those companies may pay Tree Service Houston TX a referral fee. You never pay the line. How it works.