to think that my neighbour should pay towards a new fence

[mumtosam]

In the autumn I had the flower bed at the rear of my garden dug up.

This involved cutting back to the boundary roots of the tree in my neighbours' garden. I probably should have asked them but I didn't.

Over the course of the winter the roots have moved significantly forcing the post of the boundary fence out of its concrete setting and the roots are about a meter in the air leaving a gaping hole in the ground.

Is it my fault and therefore my job to repair the fence or can I ask my neighbour to go halves or even pay for the whole repair?

Many thanks

So you cut their tree roots without asking or thinking of the consequences and now want them to pay for the repair! I know what I would tell you if you were my neighbour!

YABU

Honest opinion? If you had damaged my tree without my knowledge and without giving me the chance to get someone in who knew what they were doing, and then asked me to fork out for even part of the repair for the damage your work had caused, you would get very short shrift - and I am a pretty reasonable person. If you were to ask me to pay for the whole repair, my response would not be repeatable.

Is the fence part of their boundary? If so you might find they would be prepared to share the cost. But what you did implies a basic lack of respect for your neighbours and their property and if it's your boundary, be prepared for them to tell you exactly where to go.

I think it is upto you to pay - you should not have removed those tree roots.

I think its solely your job to pay it. Even if the fence belongs to them.

Imagine it were the other way around and they had intereferred with a tree on your side, WITHOUT your permission, which subsequently pulled your fence up and then you had a knock on the door requesting full or even half payment since you were sharing the fence??

I, like Happymumofone would simply refuse and if it were to go any further, I fear you would not have a leg to stand on.

sorry!

Perhaps you should get a tree surgeon to check on the tree and make sure it is safe?

I don't think I'd be too keen on having a tree with its roots in the air in the high winds we're having at the moment.

Who owns the fence?

You can tell by the fact that the fence posts will be on the side of whoever owns it.

You're the neighbour, aren't you? The person who has had their tree dug up, not the one who dug it?

Morally, the one who caused the damage should fix the damage, imo.

Same as Cam, check your info from the solicitor as to which boundaries you are responsible for.. I dont own my rear fence.. the neighbour behind me does!

Message withdrawn

Well Its their tree.. the roots may have damaged the fence anyway even if you hadn't cut into them?

I still want to know if its your fence mumtosam

Its easy to see!

Yes it's my fence.

I hear your opinions loud and clear. I was going to have it done myself and pay for it but thought to ask.

What would have happened had I done things correctly.

I would have been digging my flower bed and found the roots. "Hello Mr & Mrs Neighbour your roots have come through into my garden" would the response have been "OK let's get them cut back and we'll pay for all of it" maybe yes but probably not. So I get it done by a tree surgeon at a cost to me.

Would the movement would still have happened? Only I've seen it but I recon yes.

So why should what I did change things?

If the tree is impinging on your side, I don't believe you can make a neighbour do anything about it. I believe you are entitled to remove the impinging bits yourself. I know this is true of overhanging branches (not 100% sure re roots).

This is assuming there isn't a preservation order on the tree. Also, for trees in a conservation area you have to get permission to chop dwon branches even if you own the tree.

The exception is if the tree is dead, then it is the owners responsibility and duty to get it cut down asap as a dead tree can fall down at any time.

What you did changes things because you didn't take advice, and didn't take the trouble to make sure that the work wasn't going to cause problems for you or your neighbour.

In all likelihood the movement would not have happened if you hadn't done what you did. It really does sound from your OP as if your work has undermined the tree and affected its stability - roots don't move all that easily but if you have taken away too much, the rest of the root system may now be failing to support the tree. That's not your neighbour's fault in any way.

A tree surgeon would have at least been able to warn you that if you took the roots back, you were likely to risk the stability of the tree. S/he would also have been able to advise on the correct way to deal with the problem without causing the problems you describe.

All you can do is ask your neighbour if they would consider helping with the cost of the repair - but as the repair is only necessary because of your work, you have to be prepared for them to tell you to get lost.

mumtosam, are you saying that you got a tree surgeon in to cut back the roots, and didn't just hack at them yourself? If so, I would ring them and ask whether they would expect this to cause the problem that you now have or not.

So, if you replace the fence at your cost and then in the next big storm the neighbour's tree comes down because you hacked its roots, will you have the front to ask them to pay for the damage?

I didn't read the post like that, CantSleep. It reads to me as if mumtosam is looking at what might have happened if she'd had a tree surgeon look at it and is suggesting that the same thing would still have happened - so she is questioning why she should pay because she doesn't believe her actions changed anything.

One thing's for sure, you can't blame the tree

YABU... you cut the roots without asking, and now you have a problem. Sort it out yourself.

Lucky that the tree hasn't fallen down!!

There's still time, kekouan ...

Mumtosam, are you intending to get in professional help to fix it, or are you going to do it yourself again? Letting someone who knows what they're doing might save you even more bother in the future!