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Tree-trimming and Utility Companies 2 Can I plant a tree near power lines? Before planting a tree in your yard, look up. Are there utility lines overhead or close by? If so, select a variety of tree that will not grow so tall that it will touch utility lines, or the power company may insist on its removal. Or find a location in your yard without overhead utility lines. In either case, do a little research about the tree you want and find out how tall and wide the tree will be at its maturity. A good resource is “The Right Tree” brochure.4 Also, remember to call Gopher State One (1-800-252-1166 or 651-454- 0002) at least three working days before you dig, to find out where buried ut ility lines are located in your yard. My tree fell and took down a power line. Am I responsible for my neighbors’ losses as a result of the power outage? When is the utility company liable? You are not responsible for your neighbors’ losses unless you had a special relationship with them5. In law, this relationship is called a “duty.” A duty can be intentionally created, such as when you invite someone on to your property or agree to be the caretaker of another’s property. A duty can also be created by circumstances, like a duty to eliminate a danger, such as a rotten tree on your property that could fall onto an abutting busy city sidewalk. However, if there is no duty, there is no liability for negligence. An example that illustrates this duty is a court case involving a power outage that resulted in the death of a number of pigs on a hog farm6. In that case, the limbs of a willow tree fell onto a power line and caused a power outage. The tree-owner’s neighbor operated a hog farm. The power outage left the hog farmer’s barn without vent ilation, result ing in the death of many pigs. The hog farmer sued his neighbor and the power company. The court ruled that the tree-owner had no duty to protect the hog farmer, because there was no special relationship where the hog farmer had entrusted his safety to the tree-owner. The court also ruled that the power company was not liable to the hog farmer. The power company had a Rate Tariff which provided that the company would not be responsible for any lo ss or damage caused by a power outage unless the company had co mmitted gross negligence, which is defined as “very great negligence, or the absence of slight diligence, or the want of even scant care. It amounts to indifference to present legal duty, and to utter forgetfulness of legal obligations so far as other persons may be affected.”7 To avoid potential conflicts with neighbors or utility companies, manage your trees in a responsible way: plant the right tree in the right place, and hire an arborist to remove hazardous limbs before they cause liability issues. 4 The Right Tree is a free brochure available by calling Xcel Energy at 1-800-895-4999. It is also available online at www.mnpower.com/treebook/. 5 See, e.g., Donaldson v. Young Women’s Christian Ass’n, 539 N.W.2d 789, 792 (Minn. 1995). Examples of special relationships include trains or buses and their passengers; innkeepers and their lodgers, etc. 6Timmerman v.Manguson v. Northern States Power Company, an unpublished opinion of the Minnesota Court of Appeals, C6-95-2565, May 21,1996. 7 State.v. Bolsinger, 221 Minn. 154, 159, 21 N.W.2d 480, 485 (1946), quoting Altman v. Aronson, 121 N.E. 505, 506 (1919).