Storm-damaged trees and the US tax casualty loss: what the IRS says
What the Internal Revenue Service says a casualty loss is, how it words the rules for personal property such as trees and shrubs at a home, and how it posts postponed deadlines after a disaster.
This page is for tree owners. It reports what the named sources say and is not advice about your tree: for that, ask a qualified arborist or one of the offices under Who to call.
Checked against the sources at the bottom of this page on October 9, 2026. Rules, fees and pay change: the source has the last word.
This page reports what the official source says. It is not legal advice: ask the office named here. It describes IRS pages and says nothing about what any owner may deduct.
What the IRS means by a casualty loss
IRS Tax Topic 515, last reviewed or updated on September 24, 2026, says a casualty loss can come from damage to, destruction of or loss of property in a sudden, unexpected or unusual event, and names a flood, hurricane, tornado, fire, earthquake and volcanic eruption as examples. It says a casualty does not include normal wear and tear or progressive deterioration. It describes personal casualty losses as losses not connected to a trade or business or a transaction entered into for profit, and says they include losses relating to a home, household items and vehicles.
Personal losses and federally declared disasters
The same topic page says that beginning with tax year 2018, a deduction is generally not available for net personal casualty losses unless the loss is caused by a federally declared disaster. IRS Publication 547 (2025) words the rule the same way and adds an exception where the taxpayer has personal casualty gains. Its example is a tree that fell on a house in a December 2023 storm that the President did not declare a federally declared disaster. The insurer paid US$3,000 of a US$5,000 claim in January 2025 and owed nothing more, and the publication says the remaining US$2,000 loss is sustained in 2025 but is not deductible as a casualty loss under those limits.
On insurance, Topic 515 says a loss covered by insurance is not deductible unless a timely claim for reimbursement is filed, and that the loss is reduced by any reimbursement received or expected. It says a person has not sustained a loss if there is a reasonable prospect of recovery through a claim. It adds that a casualty loss is generally deductible in the year it occurred, and that for a loss from a federally declared disaster in an area warranting public or individual assistance, a taxpayer can choose to treat the loss as having occurred in the preceding tax year.
How Publication 547 measures a loss to trees and shrubs
For property that is not completely destroyed, Topic 515 says the amount of a personal casualty loss is the lesser of the adjusted basis of the property or the decrease in fair market value caused by the casualty. Publication 547 says the decrease in value generally needs a competent appraisal, and that the cost of cleaning up or repairing after a casualty is not part of the loss itself. It allows the cost of repairs to be used as a measure of the decrease in value only when listed conditions are met, such as that the repairs are actually made, are necessary to bring the property back to its prior condition, are not excessive and take care of the damage only.
The publication has a separate "Landscaping" paragraph. It says the cost of restoring landscaping to its original condition may indicate the decrease in fair market value, and that a loss may be measured by what is spent on three things:
- taking out trees and shrubs that were destroyed or damaged, less any salvage received;
- pruning and other steps to save damaged trees and shrubs;
- replanting needed to bring the property back to roughly its value before the casualty.
Publication 547 also works an example in which a hurricane destroys a home and damages shrubbery and trees. It treats the home, land and landscaping as one property, values it by appraisal before and after, and reduces the loss by the insurance payment.
The dollar reductions
Topic 515 says that for personal-use property, US$100 is subtracted from each casualty or theft event in the year, after salvage and insurance, and 10% of adjusted gross income is subtracted from the total. It adds that a taxpayer with a qualified disaster loss may elect to deduct the loss without itemizing, with no 10% reduction, but with each loss reduced by US$500 after salvage and other reimbursement. It says losses are reported on Form 4684.
Deadline relief posted by the IRS
The IRS page on tax relief in disaster situations, last reviewed or updated on September 16, 2026, lists its announcements by year and disaster. Its 2026 entries include these:
| Announcement | Event as the IRS words it | Deadlines postponed to |
|---|---|---|
| IN-2026-01 | Severe storms, straight-line winds, tornadoes and flooding in Indiana | February 1, 2027 |
| MS-2026-03 | Tropical Storm Arthur in Mississippi | February 1, 2027 |
| WV-2026-01 | Severe storms, straight-line winds, tornadoes, flooding, landslides and mudslides in West Virginia | February 1, 2027 |
Each posted announcement has its own area and its own dates, so the IRS page for the disaster is the place the dates are stated.
Who to call
- Internal Revenue Service, tax relief in disaster situations: Lists the postponed deadlines the IRS has announced for each disaster
- Internal Revenue Service, local offices: In-person help at a Taxpayer Assistance Center
- Who pays when a tree falls: The insurance and insurer-regulator side of a fallen tree
Sources
- Internal Revenue Service, Tax Topic 515, casualty, disaster and theft losses, page updated September 24, 2026, read October 9, 2026
- Internal Revenue Service, Publication 547 (2025), Casualties, Disasters, and Thefts, read October 9, 2026
- Internal Revenue Service, tax relief in disaster situations, page updated September 16, 2026, read October 9, 2026
- Internal Revenue Service, contact your local IRS office, read October 9, 2026