Putting tree risk into perspective.

A neat and easy to understand relative risk came up in Tim Harford’s marvellous Cautionary Tales - The Spreadsheet of Life and Death. Driving for about 400km/250mi has a risk of death of about one in a million (1 micromort).

We know the overall risk of death from branches or trees falling each year is less than one in a million (less than 1 micromort).

That means you’re exposing yourself to a higher risk of dying by travelling in a car on a 400km/250mi round trip to visit friends for the weekend, than you are being hit by a branch or tree over the whole of a year.