What's it called when someone damages your property?
Asked by: Marcos Kutch | Last update: February 9, 2026Score: 4.2/5 (15 votes)
When someone damages your property, it's generally called vandalism, criminal mischief, or criminal damage, which are legal terms for intentionally damaging or defacing someone else's property, with specific charges varying by jurisdiction and severity (like graffiti, breaking windows, or arson). It can also fall under the broader category of property damage, which can be intentional or negligent.
What is the legal term for damaging property?
California Penal Code § 594 PC defines the crime of vandalism as maliciously damaging, destroying or defacing someone else's property. Vandalism is a misdemeanor if the amount of damage is less than $400.00. But the charge can be a felony if the damage is $400.00 or greater.
What do you call someone who damages property?
Criminal damage, also known as vandalism or malicious mischief, refers to the intentional destruction or defacement of property belonging to another person or entity. This offense can encompass a wide range of actions, from graffiti and property damage to arson and sabotage.
What is a word for damaging property?
Vandalism is the destruction of someone else's property. Some people think of graffiti as public art, while others dismiss it as nothing but vandalism. If you damage public or private property on purpose, you've committed the crime of vandalism.
What is another word for property damage?
Law enforcement often uses these interchangeably, but they all fall under the general heading of vandalism. The other names for property damage include criminal damage, malicious trespass, or malicious mischief.
Breaking Your Own Stuff Can STILL Be Criminal Damage — Here’s Why
What are the 4 types of vandalism?
Four common types of vandalism include Graffiti/Tagging, Property Damage (like breaking windows or slashing tires), Arson (fire vandalism), and Theft/Looting**, with other categories focusing on motive like ideological (protest), vindictive (revenge), or play-based (youthful mischief)**. These acts involve intentionally damaging or defacing public or private property for various reasons, from personal gain to expressing a cause.
What is another word for destruction of property?
Destruction of property encompasses vandalism (deliberate damage, destruction, or defacement), building implosion (destroying property with explosives), and arson (destroying property with fire), and similar crimes that involve unlawful infliction of damage to or destruction of personal property or real property.
What is called when someone destroys your item property?
Damage to Property - Vandalism.
What is a better word for damage?
Common synonyms for "damage" include harm, injury, detriment, ruin, spoil, impair, hurt, and destruction, varying slightly depending on whether it's used as a noun (e.g., physical damage) or a verb (e.g., to damage a car). Other related words describe specific types of damage, like blemish, wound, bruise, tarnish, weaken, or devastate.
What is intentionally damaging or destroying another's property called?
Vandalism is a crime that involves intentionally damaging the property of another person. In New York vandalism is referred to as “criminal mischief.” There are 4 criminal mischief offenses in the New York criminal code.
What do you call someone who destroys things?
Saboteur is a noun that is fairly new to the English language; it was first used in the early 1900s, and it refers to a person who deliberately destroys or obstructs something.
What are the 4 major classification of property damage?
You can always file a claim for residential property damage, commercial property damage, motor vehicle damage, or personal property damage. Haffner Law breaks down the different types of property damage claims you can get compensation for.
What is another word for defacing property?
“Vandalism” is a term used in the legal context to describe the intentional and malicious act of damaging or defacing property that belongs to another person or entity.
What's it called when people destroy property?
Deliberate destruction of or damage to property, often referred to as vandalism, is when an individual intentionally harms, defaces, or destroys another's physical belongings. This behavior can range from breaking windows, setting fires, or causing water-related harm inside a home or business.
What are the four types of damages?
The four main types of legal damages are Compensatory (to cover actual losses like medical bills, lost wages), Consequential (indirect but foreseeable losses, like lost profits), Punitive (to punish egregious behavior), and Nominal (symbolic awards for rights violated without major harm). Sometimes, Liquidated damages (pre-set amounts in contracts) are also considered a key category.
What is a fancy word for destruction?
demolition, devastation. annihilation carnage elimination eradication extermination extinction loss massacre murder ruin slaughter.
What is another name for damage to property?
Synonyms for damage to property in English
- property damage.
- material damage.
- physical damage.
- material harm.
- material destruction.
- material losses.
- property damaged.
- destruction to property.
How do you describe damage in legal terms?
In civil cases, damages are the remedy that a party requests the court award in order to try to make the injured party whole. Typically damage awards are in the form of monetary compensation to the harmed party. Damages are imposed if the court finds that a party breached a duty under contract or violated some right.
What is a synonym for malicious damage?
willful wanton and malicious destruction of the property of others. synonyms: hooliganism, vandalism. destruction, devastation.
What to do if someone is destroying your property?
When someone intentionally damages your property, you may consider taking legal action against the responsible party to seek compensation. This can involve filing a police report, gathering evidence, and pursuing a civil lawsuit if necessary.
What is the legal term for destroying property?
Under California Penal Code Section 594, vandalism is defined as the malicious destruction, defacement, or damage to someone else's property. The key elements of vandalism include: Malicious Intent: The act must be done with the intent to damage or deface property.
What are common types of property damage?
While every policy is unique, some of the common types of property damage an insurance policy may cover include:
- Wind and Hurricane Damage. ...
- Fire and Smoke Damage. ...
- Water and Mold Damage. ...
- Roof Damage. ...
- Vandalism and Robbery.
What's another word for damaging someone's property?
The term "vandalism" describes conduct that defaces or damages public or private property. Laws that prohibit vandalism might reference terms such as unlawful graffiti, criminal property damage, or criminal or malicious mischief.
What is a fancy word for messed up?
Fancy words for "messed up" depend on the context (physical, emotional, or situational), but good options include disheveled, chaotic, disorganized, tumultuous (situation), bewildered, disconcerted (person), or botched, bungled, ruined (action), offering more sophisticated ways to express disarray, confusion, or failure.
What is a smart word for destroy?
Common synonyms for destroy include ruin, demolish, devastate, annihilate, eradicate, shatter, wreck, obliterate, and wipe out, with many others depending on context, like kill, extinguish, dismantle, or overthrow, all meaning to end, damage, or eliminate something.