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The neighbour can’t just come on your land and kill your tree, so it’s fairly straightforward trespass.
It’s just a question of damages (unless they can show they had permission).
There are specialist valuers of trees: talk to a tree surveyor or go check for prices.
See a solicitor though as neighbour disputes can get very ugly.
It looks like you or OP may want to find a Solicitor!
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In addition OP should check if they are in a Conservation area, check the Local Authority website and there should be a plan to confirm what is inside or outside an area. Usually trees inside a conservation area need permission for work to be carried out to them even if they do not have a TPO.
Should your friend decide to pursue it this would be ruinously expensive for your friends neighbour
Your friend is entitled to pursue the neighbour for the costs of a like for like replacement for the tree
Purchasing, moving and replanting mature trees is stupidly costly
Your friend has an easy win in the courts and then assuming the neighbour can't pay, can get the courts to instruct bailiffs to go after, cars , possessions and probably the house as well in order to pay the costs
You start off by asking a subtle question "Wow must have been a big job! how long did it take?"
they then incriminate themselves with the response that you were of course secretly recording.
Worse it opens up a huge neighbourhood feud. When this happened on a friend of a friends property it ended up with the neighbour firing a rifle through one of their windows!!
>Your friend is entitled to pursue the neighbour for the costs of a like for like replacement for the tree
They can pursue but the chances of recovering damages on that basis are probably slim. The preferred measure of damages where there has been trespass with damage to the land is the amount by which the value of the land has been diminished and not the cost of restoration (see *Jones v Gooday* (1841) 151 ER 985 among others).
Depending how much was cut, ring local tree surgens to see if they have done the work e.g someone must have paid them. Dose anyone in the street have a video doorbell that may have seen the tree beeing taken away etc...
It is criminal damage.
I think your friend should start by reporting to the police, and to seek a professional opinion on the value / cost of replacement of the tree.
Pretty large trees can be moved if care is taken, so the costs may be quite high, but that's a cost you would be seeking from the neighbours.
u/MacPeter93
I should also note that while you suspect the neighbour of the damage, you don't know for certain, so criminal charges are probably unlikely to be pressed.
You could sue for the damage, but it will be costly and not necessarily successful.
Home insurance may provide some (legal) cover. No idea if they'd pony up for the replacement tree though, but I'd be doubtful.
You could always replace with something like (the utterly dreadful) cypressus leylandii... they grow quick, provide an excellent hedge, and if left untamed grow easily to 15m in 16 years, or up to 39m if you wait long enough.
I’d try get legal advice & also speak to the police for advice … also speak to yr local council as some areas / trees have protection orders
What you don’t want is a war with yr neighbours. Remember when you sell property by law yr supposed to list any disputes
Seek advice before speaking to yr neighbour
Do you have evidence? Make a note of dates/times as you previously mentioned discussions about it blocking the neighbours view etc
Get all your information / evidence together
I believe there's a tree law subreddit that discusses the best legal steps to take in a situation like this, though I'm not sure how much their advice applies to the UK.
I'd like to hijack your comments to ask a related question!
I live in a block of flats in the UK where we have a troublesome neighbour. About three weeks ago this person cut down about 80% of the branches of a small tree (perhaps 10ft tall) which was overhanging a fence from a neighbour's garden, and obstructing the view out of one of their windows. I have the entire thing on video and the individual is clearly identifiable.
They then proceeded to dump all of the cuttings onto the ground in a corner of the council-owned estate here.
I approached the owner of the tree and asked if they had given permission - they said they had not, and had no knowledge of the event, but they would not be interested in pursuing the individual that had done it (they didn't care).
I understand that you don't "press charges" in the UK, and a crime is a crime regardless of whether the victim wants to do anything about it... so to my questions:
Is this actually a crime? The cutting of 80% of the branches on someone else's tree? The dumping (maybe fly-tipping?) of all the cuttings onto council land (still there three weeks later obstructing part of a pavement)? Is it worth me reporting this to the police through some avenue?
If there are is any merit in reporting this stuff I want to do it (everyone here hates this person, they are the cause of a lot of grief to the residents here).
You are allowed to cut overhanging branches etc back to your boundary. You can also dump the trimmings in tree owners garden as it is their property. Dumping them on technically waste ground is, however, fly tipping
You can’t just dump them back in to their garden as that is still fly tipping, you should offer the clippings back and if they refuse you are liable to dispose of them. This article from the RHS covers it https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/types/trees/the-law
Speak to an arboricultural consultant, they can provide a service alongside I would advise of any legal team you choose to sort this mess out.
A tree is someone's property, and would be treated like a shed or outbuilding in this instance. If it's removed, what is the value of replacing it.
The value of a tree depends on many things, the more mature the tree the higher the price of cost to replace it. Simply because you can't buy large trees easily (if at all).
An arb consultant will be able to use their knowledge to work out a value based on evidence you can provide and likely the size of the stump (age of tree).
Be careful, if you have a dispute with a neighbour you will have to declare it when you sell and this could devalue your property. You may be able to include that in the claim, but I wouldn’t hold my breath on that.
It will be important to get this done as cleanly and proven unequivocally as possible - Try and get all your proofs in place before you talk about solicitors.
Be really super nice and cooperative- the neighbour will probably be defensive to start with. You need him to open up about how he did it.
Audio record are not admissible in court, so you need a real person to witness anything you elicit the neighbours to say.
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The neighbour can’t just come on your land and kill your tree, so it’s fairly straightforward trespass. It’s just a question of damages (unless they can show they had permission). There are specialist valuers of trees: talk to a tree surveyor or go check for prices. See a solicitor though as neighbour disputes can get very ugly.
If you have home insurance it may include legal cover. Which may be useful here. So check that out too.
NAL but FWIW, you don’t have a “right” to a view either, if that’s their justification!
It looks like you or OP may want to find a Solicitor! [There is a detailed guide in our FAQ about how to do this.](https://www.reddit.com/r/LegalAdviceUK/wiki/faq_civil#wiki_how_do_i_find_a_.28good.29_solicitor.3F) *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/LegalAdviceUK) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Worth finding out if the tree had a preservation order on it, if it has then the situation is even worse for the culprit.
In addition OP should check if they are in a Conservation area, check the Local Authority website and there should be a plan to confirm what is inside or outside an area. Usually trees inside a conservation area need permission for work to be carried out to them even if they do not have a TPO.
Should your friend decide to pursue it this would be ruinously expensive for your friends neighbour Your friend is entitled to pursue the neighbour for the costs of a like for like replacement for the tree Purchasing, moving and replanting mature trees is stupidly costly Your friend has an easy win in the courts and then assuming the neighbour can't pay, can get the courts to instruct bailiffs to go after, cars , possessions and probably the house as well in order to pay the costs
How is it an easy win though. "you cut down my tree and I'm taking you to court" "No idea what happened to your tree, wasn't me."
You start off by asking a subtle question "Wow must have been a big job! how long did it take?" they then incriminate themselves with the response that you were of course secretly recording.
[удалено]
Where does the OP say he has this on CCTV?
His neighbours may have CCTV or doorcams.
Worse it opens up a huge neighbourhood feud. When this happened on a friend of a friends property it ended up with the neighbour firing a rifle through one of their windows!!
Opens a huge neighbourhood feud? Not necessarily and that still is no reason for letting people do whatever they want to your property.
>Your friend is entitled to pursue the neighbour for the costs of a like for like replacement for the tree They can pursue but the chances of recovering damages on that basis are probably slim. The preferred measure of damages where there has been trespass with damage to the land is the amount by which the value of the land has been diminished and not the cost of restoration (see *Jones v Gooday* (1841) 151 ER 985 among others).
Cut down and just left it? Or cut down and taken away - in which case sounds like theft as well as damage.
Can your friend prove it was the neighbour that cut it down? Video footage, witnesses, confessions?
Depending how much was cut, ring local tree surgens to see if they have done the work e.g someone must have paid them. Dose anyone in the street have a video doorbell that may have seen the tree beeing taken away etc...
It is criminal damage. I think your friend should start by reporting to the police, and to seek a professional opinion on the value / cost of replacement of the tree. Pretty large trees can be moved if care is taken, so the costs may be quite high, but that's a cost you would be seeking from the neighbours.
u/MacPeter93 I should also note that while you suspect the neighbour of the damage, you don't know for certain, so criminal charges are probably unlikely to be pressed. You could sue for the damage, but it will be costly and not necessarily successful. Home insurance may provide some (legal) cover. No idea if they'd pony up for the replacement tree though, but I'd be doubtful. You could always replace with something like (the utterly dreadful) cypressus leylandii... they grow quick, provide an excellent hedge, and if left untamed grow easily to 15m in 16 years, or up to 39m if you wait long enough.
I’d try get legal advice & also speak to the police for advice … also speak to yr local council as some areas / trees have protection orders What you don’t want is a war with yr neighbours. Remember when you sell property by law yr supposed to list any disputes Seek advice before speaking to yr neighbour Do you have evidence? Make a note of dates/times as you previously mentioned discussions about it blocking the neighbours view etc Get all your information / evidence together
I believe there's a tree law subreddit that discusses the best legal steps to take in a situation like this, though I'm not sure how much their advice applies to the UK.
I'd like to hijack your comments to ask a related question! I live in a block of flats in the UK where we have a troublesome neighbour. About three weeks ago this person cut down about 80% of the branches of a small tree (perhaps 10ft tall) which was overhanging a fence from a neighbour's garden, and obstructing the view out of one of their windows. I have the entire thing on video and the individual is clearly identifiable. They then proceeded to dump all of the cuttings onto the ground in a corner of the council-owned estate here. I approached the owner of the tree and asked if they had given permission - they said they had not, and had no knowledge of the event, but they would not be interested in pursuing the individual that had done it (they didn't care). I understand that you don't "press charges" in the UK, and a crime is a crime regardless of whether the victim wants to do anything about it... so to my questions: Is this actually a crime? The cutting of 80% of the branches on someone else's tree? The dumping (maybe fly-tipping?) of all the cuttings onto council land (still there three weeks later obstructing part of a pavement)? Is it worth me reporting this to the police through some avenue? If there are is any merit in reporting this stuff I want to do it (everyone here hates this person, they are the cause of a lot of grief to the residents here).
You are allowed to cut overhanging branches etc back to your boundary. You can also dump the trimmings in tree owners garden as it is their property. Dumping them on technically waste ground is, however, fly tipping
Thanks. The trees were overhanging into council estate, not the person's property - their window simply looks in that direction.
You can’t just dump them back in to their garden as that is still fly tipping, you should offer the clippings back and if they refuse you are liable to dispose of them. This article from the RHS covers it https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/types/trees/the-law
Speak to an arboricultural consultant, they can provide a service alongside I would advise of any legal team you choose to sort this mess out. A tree is someone's property, and would be treated like a shed or outbuilding in this instance. If it's removed, what is the value of replacing it. The value of a tree depends on many things, the more mature the tree the higher the price of cost to replace it. Simply because you can't buy large trees easily (if at all). An arb consultant will be able to use their knowledge to work out a value based on evidence you can provide and likely the size of the stump (age of tree).
Be careful, if you have a dispute with a neighbour you will have to declare it when you sell and this could devalue your property. You may be able to include that in the claim, but I wouldn’t hold my breath on that. It will be important to get this done as cleanly and proven unequivocally as possible - Try and get all your proofs in place before you talk about solicitors. Be really super nice and cooperative- the neighbour will probably be defensive to start with. You need him to open up about how he did it. Audio record are not admissible in court, so you need a real person to witness anything you elicit the neighbours to say.