AIBU to resent being asked to pay for neighbours cutting back our tree?

I'm not trying to be patronising, just following your lead reread your original comment to me. My comments stand, when I read the first few paragraphs they seem like the perfect neighbours, read the last and the real issues come out.

Our neighbours asked us to remove some branches of an oak tree and I realised the tree needed work on our side too. I paid the whole cost of the tree surgeon and they came with a shredding machine and completely cleared up both gardens.

Be as patronising as you wish but it was you who has not read it properly. They tried to keep up with the maintenance, they were told they weren’t allowed. LL/EA should have told the renters to sort it when they were there, considering it’s part of their contract to keep up with things like that while residing there.

I agree I can understand why you got where you did 😊 just hope they can work it out and arrange a plan for them to maintain their own garden choices rather than expect their neighbours to worry about it.

I have read the last paragraph, OP talks about is it unreasonable to expect her to pay for it to be sorted. Hence my comment about a tree surgeon 🤷‍♀️. Yes, she says “we agreed will cut back the tree” but she doesn’t say she’s personally going to cut it back. Maybe she is, not overly clear.

But with two comments in the OP about paying to have it cut back it didn’t seem a crazy jump to think she’s talking about a tree surgeon. 🤷‍♀️. I doubt she’s paying a sparky to sort it.

The High Hedges Act does not apply to deciduous trees.

They can cut it back.

You have no obligation to pay for it.

They should offer the cuttings to you.

you can decline

they should not throw them over - but they probably will.

I have looked at this before, but my council wanted something like £300 just for them to come out and look at it. Plus, before that you need to have attempted to solve the problem amicably, and/or via mediation. I can assure you this won't be solved by me asking politely.

And it isn't just one set of neighbours...honestly, it's really not me that's the problem, although I do appear to be the common denominator here! I'm just surrounded by people with gardens they are unwilling to maintain.

Try

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/high-hedges-complaining-to-the-council/high-hedges-complaining-to-the-council

Also no where has it stated they need a tree surgeon. The op says they will deal with it and debris, the clearly just don't think they should have to. I don't think anyone has read the op final paragraph.

Because it's their tree, not the neighbours who probably got better things to do with their time than deal with annoying neighbours and their overhanging trees.

But it’s now more expensive as it’s a bigger job due to the tenants refusing access previously. Maybe before the OP could have managed it but now it needs a tree surgeon? Why should she have to pay for that when if they’d allowed her access previously she could have done it for no cost?

Can’t you go round and cut the tree back on that side the same as you do on your side?

We have a very pretty tree, I call it a bottle brush, it's maroon leaves and wispy bits. It overhangs a little bit of our neighbours and I have said to him in the past, if you need us to prune it at any time, let us know.

We were away a few weeks and he pruned it. Scalped it more like. And he chucked all the branches over onto our flower beds. They were big thick branches, we now have to get it all to the local tip. I found that incredibly rude.

Laws on trees are really devoid of common sense. Can only wish it would change!

Renters are always very good at ignoring issues as it's not their house to worry about. The owner feels otherwise. Deal with your tree OP.

Just do it yourself… explain the tenants had been refusing.. get him to put it in his new tenancy agreements that they need to allow you to come and trim it back every X months. Honestly there is literally no issue if you are going to sort it out it’s not like he’s got someone in to do it without talking to you first.

I was referring to this part of their post. 'it’s also unreasonable to expect us to pay to deal with that? Surely that’s just something we all take care of in our own gardens?' just in case you needed to reread that part

Crikey. Some absolute thick as pig shit responses 🤦‍♀️
The first response is correct. You are under no legal obligation to pay for it @Eatyourgreensplease .

Has someone actually suggested digging up the tree and replanting it?
How do these people function in real life?

I mean, legally you don't have to pay for it, so if you don't want to, then don't.

Edited to add that I realise OP has offered to do it, but I went off on a bit of a tangent there!

But when I'm Queen I'm going to pass a law that makes tree-owners responsible for proper maintenance if it encroaches on a neighbour's garden. I don't know why people plant massive bloody trees and hedges on a boundary and then wonder why the neighbours get fed up with branches and leaves dropping in their garden, and pigeon shit all over everything.

I have to pay hundreds of pounds every couple of years to have my neighbours' enormous laurel hedges and assorted trees cut back and pay for all of the cuttings to be removed - I'm not allowed to cut anything off the height and they don't give a shiny shit, so year by year we get less sun, nothing grows in the top half of our garden, our summerhouse roof has been ruined, and roots are growing under their fences and up through our lawn. The laurel in particular is an absolute pain in the arse - it was planted just after we moved here 20 years ago, and it's not been touched since, apart from by us, so you can imagine how big it is now.

I think you need to reread properly.. they have tried and offered to go and cut it and weren’t allowed!! They can’t just break in next door and do it!

Then they should have accepted the offer from the OP to trim it… simple..

They should have allowed them to trim it back as they asked multiple times and were declined. Simple.

Nails it.

Tricky one. One of our neighbours has a beautiful tree that overhangs our garden. When it needs a trim, he asks us for a convenient date and pays someone to trim it and dispose of the debris.

To be honest it is really annoying when a neighbour plants a tree that then grows ti overhang your property.
I agree though that they should cut their own side. The only problem with this is they might not trim, prune etc it properly and if they just hack everything that overhangs, could damage or kill your tree.