Under the Fences Act, if you or your neighbour caused a fence to be damaged or destroyed by fire or by a falling tree because of neglect, the one who was neglectful will have to pay the total cost of repair. If there is any immediate problem with straying animals or any other unreasonable risk, you can repair the fence straightaway and get your neighbour's share of the cost later. At present, these provisions do not apply to the government when your property has a common fence with crown land.

If a dividing fence is damaged by a natural event - for example by a tree falling in a storm - you can fix the fence then seek to recover the cost of repair of the fence from your neighbour.

The Fences Act does not deal with the situation where a tree’s roots or branches on a neighbouring property intrude into your property and cause damage to your boundary fence. You are entitled at common law to remove roots or branches which intrude into your property, provided the roots or branches are returned to your neighbour by placing them on your neighbour’s side of the fence. A Magistrate can take into account the damage caused to a boundary fence by a neighbouring tree’s roots or branches when determining the proportion of the costs of repair to or replacement of the fence to be borne by each party.