The dispute arose after a tree growing in the Presidential Park in the center of Vilnius fell on two cars on October 8, 2023. The insurance company paid out insurance claims to the car owners and sought reimbursement of this amount from the municipality.
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The court of first instance dismissed the insurance company’s complaint, among other things, stating that the exact location of the tree’s growth was not clearly established and it was not proven that the municipality improperly fulfilled its duties. The Supreme Administrative Court of Lithuania (LVAT) disagreed with this assessment.
The data collected in the case confirmed that the tree grew in the state-owned Presidential Park, near the fence bordering the parking lot of the Ministry of National Defence. Although the land plot was transferred for use to the President’s Office, the contract did not impose exceptional obligations on it regarding the maintenance of greenery. The court found that the Vilnius city municipality was responsible for the maintenance and protection of the greenery in this area.
LVAT emphasized that the municipality must ensure the protection and maintenance of greenery in its territory, determine their condition, and monitor it. This duty applies regardless of whether the municipality received a notification about a potentially dangerous tree.
In the case, the municipality did not provide evidence of an inventory of greenery conducted at the dispute site, and the photos showing browned wood suggested that the condition of the broken tree was not properly assessed. The court found that the municipality, by failing to ensure proper tree maintenance, did not act as required by law, and this failure caused the damage.
The municipality’s argument that the tree could have been broken by a very strong wind also did not change the court’s assessment. Although strong wind was recorded in Vilnius that day, it was established that at the time of the incident its speed was 12–18 m/s, while a wind speed of 28–32 m/s was attributed to a natural meteorological phenomenon at that time. Therefore, the weather conditions could not be considered the sole factor causing the tree to break or a force majeure circumstance.
The court also found no grounds to reduce liability due to the behavior of the car owners, who parked their cars near the fence bordering the park where the trees grew on a windy day.
LVAT established all the conditions necessary for the municipality’s liability – improper fulfillment of the duty to maintain the tree, the damage caused, and the causal link between them. As a result, LVAT awarded the insurance company 14,086.77 EUR in damages from the Vilnius city municipality and 5% annual interest from the date the case was filed in court until full execution of the decision. The decision is final and not subject to appeal.
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