Property damage (or
cf. criminal damage in England and Wales) is damage or destruction of
real or tangible
personal property, caused by
negligence
Negligence (Lat. ''negligentia'') is a failure to exercise appropriate and/or ethical ruled care expected to be exercised amongst specified circumstances. The area of tort law known as ''negligence'' involves harm caused by failing to act as ...
,
willful destruction, or
act of nature.
It is similar to
vandalism
Vandalism is the action involving deliberate destruction of or damage to public or private property.
The term includes property damage, such as graffiti and defacement directed towards any property without permission of the owner. The ter ...
and
arson
Arson is the crime of willfully and deliberately setting fire to or charring property. Although the act of arson typically involves buildings, the term can also refer to the intentional burning of other things, such as motor vehicles, wate ...
(destroying property with fire), property damage includes vandalizing property that
people
A person ( : people) is a being that has certain capacities or attributes such as reason, morality, consciousness or self-consciousness, and being a part of a culturally established form of social relations such as kinship, ownership of prope ...
own, while causing more physical damage and high costs. It can also be a synonym or term under these categories.
Sub types of property damage are malicious destruction of property (sometimes called destruction of property or simply destruction) which is towards
real property, and damage to property is towards tangible
personal property.
See also
*
Criminal mischief
*
Criminal damage in English law
Criminal damage in English law was originally a common law offence. The offence was largely concerned with the protection of dwellings and the food supply, and few sanctions were imposed for damaging personal property. Liability was originall ...
*
Arson
Arson is the crime of willfully and deliberately setting fire to or charring property. Although the act of arson typically involves buildings, the term can also refer to the intentional burning of other things, such as motor vehicles, wate ...
*
Vandalism
Vandalism is the action involving deliberate destruction of or damage to public or private property.
The term includes property damage, such as graffiti and defacement directed towards any property without permission of the owner. The ter ...
References
Criminal law
Property insurance
Vandalism
Problem behavior
Property crimes
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