He meets Amy, a city girl who became a resident of a small town after her marriage to George. The stark difference between living in the very center of urbanized civilization and living in a township was something of an adjustment for Amy. She sure loved the sights and sounds of nature on display: the lake, the trees, the grass, the flowers, and the vibrant color of the winged birds. Yet how she missed the hustle and bustle and, yes, even the noise of what she had always recognized as the center of commercial shopping, the traffic of cars and buses, including honking horns, and the life she had been for. been polite!
Although noise had always been at the core of his existence, the incessant pecking at the side of his roof in the small town in America, where he had currently taken up residence, did his nerves no good. You see, five in the morning was too early for a woman of the world like her to be jolted awake from her dozing state. And the fact that the pecking came from a finely feathered ‘friend’ known more commonly as the woodpecker did little to put away her uneasiness.
Then came the creak that really flummoxed Amy. It seemed that the pesky woodpecker had started causing damage to her beautiful home! But nothing could appease Amy when she discovered that her standard homeowners insurance policy didn’t even cover the damages and losses she now suffered!
“You see, ma’am,” the friendly insurance agent explained, “insurance companies just don’t cover general home liability that has occurred through negligence. In fact, they view woodpecker damage as something they could have been prevented by proper home maintenance.”
If only Amy had known! She surely would have met the small danger with a vengeance. Now it seemed that it was too late and that she and her husband would have to bear the losses through out-of-pocket expenses.
They say that life is a great teacher. Amy knows better than most.
“Learn from me,” says Amy, a former city dweller. “Don’t let the pests get the best of you or your home hazards will!”
How do you tackle a woodpecker problem? There are a number of practical methods:
• Go out and buy a tool that is on the market for woodpecker deterrents.
• Surround outside areas of the house that connect to the roof with chain-link fences.
• Tape colored tape under the roof and around the roof gutters.
• Seal holes in the attic and siding with caulking or other materials.
• Hire a pest removal company to take care of the problem.
• Explore your own creativity to tackle the nasty problem of pecking wood.
Ask Amy. She’ll tell you if you’re prepared you’ve been warned: talk to an independent insurance agent about your homeowners insurance policy to make sure it suits her needs.