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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

Yet another Neighbour Dispute Thread!

75 replies

scotchbunny · 02/07/2017 21:43

I am very happy to accept that I am the one being unreasonable, however I'm quite keen to figure a few things out about the following situation.

I have a leafy tree bottom right corner of my garden. There when we bought property and as it was quite high we have maintained it and cut it every couple of years.
Next door neighbour are older couple who are incredibly precious of their immaculate garden. They complain to me frequently, various things, there is a plant of mine poking through the fence, the tree is still too big, the leaves that drop in autumn blow into their garden etc etc. Biggest bug bear is the tree and even though we cut last year all overhanging beaches, which when I say over hanging they prodruted 1-2 foot at the height of the tree.

Today she came round again complaining, however this time quite verbally threatening. She has consulted citizens advice and says she'll have it removed and bill me. Then she said she'll take it even further and consult a solicitor. I have explained we maintain it within our budget but last year cost of full removal was expensive beyond belief. Plus it's a nice tree and does give me a degree of privacy from a house behind my garden.

Is this true, legal? Can she remove it and bill me?

OP posts:

DarkLikeVader · 02/07/2017 22:47

Watching with interest Scotchbunny as we have a very similar situation going on with our neighbour and a 150 year old cherry tree. and whilst I know it wouldn't be legal for the neighbour to touch our trees in our garden what exactly would happen, I can't see the police doing anything.. and surely after the tree has gone there's no good recourse anyway.

Badweekjustgotworse · 02/07/2017 22:51

If you really want her to know what irritating plants are plant a stags horn sumach against your border with her and prune it annually. It sprouts up suckers every time it's pruned for metres around it. It'll drive her batshit and as my mother always said to us when we fought as kids, if you burn when you've nothing to firm over I'll give you something proper to burn over!

Badweekjustgotworse · 02/07/2017 22:52

Burn = gurn
Firm = gurn!
Burn = gurn!!!!

Feckin predictive text

Jayfee · 02/07/2017 22:55

I have a garden full of trees - all planted by the previous owner. We have paid a lot for tree maintenance but neighbours have paid for tree work when stuff overhangs their garden. This applies to two sets of neighbours and the council who own the flats at the end of our garden. I am fairly sure your neighbour is wrong. I think there is a lot of online legal comment about this.

Littlecaf · 02/07/2017 23:05

The Council will not remove a tree on private land just because it annoys your neighbour. If it's not dead, dangerous or dying then then they are not going to spend public money doing that. Your neighbour is most likely misinterpreting advice.

80sMum · 02/07/2017 23:12

Our neighbours keep chopping things down in our garden! They usually wait until we're away on holiday to do it.

So we came back from holiday in mid May to find that all of this year's blackberries had been cut down, leaving only the unproductive, previous year's growth! The blackberry bushes (thornless ones) are alongside the boundary fence. The fuckers- neighbours had reached over the fence (about 3ft high) and cut the whole lot - so no blackberries this year.

Then a couple of weeks ago, they cut the top 8 feet from 4 saplings that were also just inside the boundary. They were not encroaching onto their side at all - but nonetheless they decided to saw them down to the height of the fence (6 ft). It must have taken a while, as these were proper little ash trees. To add insult to injury, they then fly-tipped all the debris over the fence! It was several heavy and large branches, which had been thrown over onto our raspberry canes, causing damage to the plants.

This has been ongoing for years! When DH has previously tried to speak to them about it, the neighbour just hurrumphed and walked away! Why do people do these things? It's outrageous! And there seems to be nothing that we can do about it! I am sure that the police wouldn't be in the slightest bit interested.

Badweekjustgotworse · 02/07/2017 23:23

80s that outrageous, how have you mana gawd to to self combust with rage? I'd be livid

WineAndTiramisu · 02/07/2017 23:28

80s mum - I'd be getting slap happy with some weed killer over the fence to get my own back for that one!

Catmint · 02/07/2017 23:40

Citizens Advice may well have advised her, but can only do so based on the information she provided, which may not have been accurate. They have a website, might be worth a look yourself.

Allabitmuchisntit · 02/07/2017 23:45

It's trespassing and criminal damage.

Been there done that.

confuugled1 · 02/07/2017 23:59

I would talj to Citizens Advice yourself - I bet she hugely exaggerated and mis-explained the issue. Then you can say that when you spoke to CAB and clarified the situation they realised that she is only able to trim the overhanging branches at her expense (and offer them to you but you can also say you want them to deal with it so you don't have the hassle). And that furthermore if she were to do what she suggested she is the one that would be prosecuted and could even be made to fork out huge amounts to put in a full size tree to replace the one she damaged to put you back to the situation you were to get rid of her damage.

Might take the wind out of her sails and stop her...

Also have you got legal insurance on your house insurance? They might be to write you a legal letter warning her too.

ChasedByBees · 02/07/2017 23:59

Advice from west Berkshire council
info.westberks.gov.uk/CHttpHandler.ashx?id=22464&p=0

Lewes council advice:
www.lewes.gov.uk/planning/15270.asp

Another page which has some interesting links
www.problemneighbours.co.uk/rights-trees-and-overhanging-branches.html

They all say the same and your local council will probably have a similar page. Search for them and 'trees' and 'law'. Your neighbour is wrong. Print a copy and pop it through her door.

Plainlycrackers · 03/07/2017 00:00

A 12-15ft high tree is absolutely tiny... she doesn't have a leg to stand on... you manage the tree at very regular intervals (every other yr is more than sufficient) and it isn't evergreen (unlike the 40ft lleylandii behind our house🙄). If it is an interesting species or affords noteworthy character to the locality then a TPO could be a possibility. The tree warden at your local council may be able to give you useful advice. Stuck to your 🔫🔫🔫 OP

User02 · 03/07/2017 00:30

Chased - I read your 3 link and also contained there is the fact that trees can do a lot of damage to property. I recently got a survey for a property that I liked and the proximity of the trees is mentioned. Something about the height of the tree should be less than the distance from the tree to the house.
There are many trees in the garden of the house attached to me. The trees are 40+ feet high. It would be assumed that if the trees fell they would damage the next house. They could well reach my house but even if not surely damage to the attached house would affect surrounding properties.
These neighbours are very difficult people. They think they know everything but actually they are not very knowledgeable. They have failed to maintain boundary fences and they are not concerned about how they affect others.
I will be ruling out properties with trees in the vicinity in future.
At least the OP is doing the decent thing and keeping her tree under control.

planetclom · 03/07/2017 00:53

Let her complain, we had a massive evergreen tree in our garden, god knows how big it was, I never considered the neighbours, we moved in, it didn't cast a shadow on the garden that I used happy days, second year we where there I suddenly decided this tree was a pain in the backside and made the garden look a lot smaller than it was (I was not wrong) my Dad, husband and brother after a large Sunday roast and bottle of wine set to on it one sunny day and the neighbours appeared. turned out this tree had been a major bone of contention for about 15 -20 years and they had all complained, all 4 houses, they had sort legal advice and there was absolutely nothing they could do. They hadn't even asked me is it could come down as they had exhausted every avenue with three previous owners! Anyway they helped us get it down and we made new friends.
Don't worry their is little they can do, but equally don't keep a tree out of sheer blood mindedness because ours took up so much space.

KeiraKnightleyActsWithHerTeeth · 03/07/2017 03:45

She is deluded if she really thinks she can do anything to your property without serious legal repercussions. Make sure she knows you know that the law is on your side and then ignore her.

darbyshaw · 03/07/2017 06:55

The neighbour is going down the standard route that councils advise. Speak to your neighbour > citizens advice > legal appointment. I work for the council and this is what we recommend if there is a neighbour dispute. However, the neighbour has misunderstood the process completely if she thinks this can strong arm you into doing what she wants.

The council will not perform tree work on private land for the reason she is alleging and are very unlikely to do it full stop. You are also unlikely to get a TPO put on the tree unless there is some special significance to the tree, there is significant public amenity value or a threat to it. Quite often even those things are not enough. Google TEMPO for more on this (Tree Evaluation Method for Preservation Orders).

Also just to address the issues of giving back branches, they don't have to give them back to you, they have to offer them back. If they just dump them over your fence technically this is fly tipping.

Gingerandgivingzerofucks · 03/07/2017 07:03

Call the cops, 101. It's criminal damage.

I can't feel sympathy for the neighbours about a 15ft tree, but our neighbour has a 40ft self seeded monstrosity which blocks all our afternoon light and sheds 1000s of seeds. I'm forever pulling up teeny or not so teeny saplings. Drives me nuts.

metalmum15 · 03/07/2017 07:13

OP who owns the fence between you and her where your clematis is growing? Because if it's your fence, she shouldn't have anything attached to it (like hanging baskets) without your permission. You could politely point that out next time. If it's her fence, make sure you haven't attached anything to it otherwise that will be her next complaint.

metalmum15 · 03/07/2017 07:13

reuset · 03/07/2017 07:27

She sounds like a nightmare, OP. Tell her she's welcome to try.

80s I'd take and pursue some legal advice on that one!

Original poster

scotchbunny · 03/07/2017 08:45

I thought trees may be an issue if it blocks the light from property, but this is no where near her property, it's at the very end corner of my garden!!

What's annoying is it was planted in the 1960s and she was friends with the previous neighbour and never clearly bothered her about it, we reduced its height significantly!

She's a curtain twitching, window knocking batshit crazy neighbour for sure. Is it when you retire there is nothing else to occupy yourself with????!!

OP posts:

2littlemoos · 03/07/2017 08:54

Not legal. Perhaps you could offer to collect the fallen leaves in her garden when the time comes?

BMW6 · 03/07/2017 09:05

OP just tell her to jog on. Do not engage in any further discussion.

Ifailed · 03/07/2017 09:15

She's a curtain twitching, window knocking batshit crazy neighbour for sure

I suspect there are other things going on in her life, and this tree is just a convenient scapegoat. As others have said, they have no right to doing anything to a (relatively small) tree on your land - however some sort of compromise could lead to better relationships? If you are not particularly attached to the tree, get a quote for it's removal and see if they want to pay for it?

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