What should we pay for the tree?

[Anon22224]

Hello! We are in a bit of quandary with our neighbours. They are very nice neighbours and we get on well.

Our neighbours had a very large (over 100ft) soft wood tree in the very corner of their garden which bent over and so covered half of our garden (which is 1/2 an acre!) (it did not fall over their garden at all as bent). We didn’t mind too much but this year extremely large branches began to fall down, first it happened in a storm and then we had a couple come down with totally normal weather. We were very concerned about this as had a branch fallen on us or more worryingly one of our children they would almost certainly have died due to the size and height. We got a tree surgeon in and cut it right back over our side costing £1000 but the tree surgeon said there was no way to keep it 100% safe unless we cut the tree down completely. We could cut it right back to the trunk but it would continue to grow rapidly.

We discussed with our neighbours and came to the decision that it needed to be cut down to keep everyone safe. They got 2 quotes, one for £10,000 and one for £7,500 from original tree surgeon so went with that one. Originally they were booked for December and our neighbours decided not to stump grind the tree as this was an extra £1000.

In the meantime we were looking at our garden as with the tree branches gone we could actually get things to grow and grass to grow which we previously hadn’t done due to lack of light. Our garden is an L shape and we wondered if our neighbours would sell us the corner of their garden (where the tree is) to make it so that we could see to the end of our garden so kids would play at the bottom and we could still see them (cutting out the corner roughly 2 fence panels which is currently where the stump of the large tree is, the stump is so big that it is almost 2 fence panels in diameter)

We sent our neighbours a message and said that we wondered if they would consider selling us this small corner (their garden is also 1/2 an acre so as you can imagine this corner is a small piece of their garden), if so we would pay for the tree entirely (as it would become ours) as well as legal fees etc and also a new fence as the fence is broken and had to be pulled down to cut the tree. The fence is their fence as it’s on their right hand side. We did say regardless of this we would contribute to the tree.

The tree felling was brought forward as they had space and so it’s now been cut down, it took 5 days and considerably caused chaos to our garden as it was all done from our side, there’s a giant dent in our garden where the tree was felled, it also caused damage to our driveway as heavy machinery had to come in and out and it’s covered in wood chip and pieces of wood etc. We didn’t say anything as needed to be done obviously and not the biggest deal until the next message!

We got a reply saying they didn’t want to sell the land (fair enough no big deal) but that they wanted us to go 50/50 on the tree and the fence as we were the ones who wanted it cut down.

This I suppose is true but it was to stop dangerous branches falling? What were we supposed to do?

Total cost with fence for 50/50 would be £5000, and we’ve already spent £1000 on having it cut back so the kids could play out for some of summer.

What would you do? Obviously we have the money as we would have spent it buying the land but we feel that that’s too much on the principal that it’s their tree and fence and we’ve had the inconvenience of it all?

thanks for reading!

YABU - you owe 50/50

YANBU - you owe lews

I'd reply:

Hi Neighbours, when I said I'd contribute towards the cost of your tree being removed, I was thinking more along the lines of a £500 contribution. We've already paid £1000 for the overhanging branches that were causing issues to be removed. Now we've also been left with repairs to our garden and driveway left by the tree surgeons when removing your tree. Please let me know if you'd like to accept a £500 contribution from us.

The thing is, yes, you asked for the tree to be cut down, but it is their responsibility and they should have discussed 50/50 PRIOR to the work being done. Also, it's their fence and it was destroyed by their tree, so this isn't your problem. Lastly, why on earth was the machinery being used or transported via YOUR driveway?

I personally would not be paying half of the tree and fence costs. No way. They should have been maintaining it and not let it get dangerously bad.

I too am amazed by the cost! I am also surprised that such a large tree wasn't under a tree protection order - any tree of that size would be around where I live and the companies won't touch them unless the local authority either confirm they aren't or approve the work.

My neighbours paid a qualified tree surgeon/arboriculturalist,around £1000 to drop an enormous, but diseased, Sycamore recently. Granted you may be in a more expensive area, but still it is astounding.

I got 6 large conifers taken down and 10 new fence panels for less than £2000.

Thanks this is a great reply!

I agree if you just want this over with, pay half. It's not worth falling out with neighbours over which is so stressful.

OR
If you feel up to it, negotiate for less than half, but do it in person, not over text

Yes this is more what I would have expected to pay but I've never had a tree felled so wasn't sure. OP have you definitely seen the written quotes or was it just told/texted to you by the neighbour? I'm wondering if there's a chance they've inflated it at all?

Seeing as they’re cutting it down entirely at your request and for your benefit, I’d say you really ought to chip in a couple of thousand.

The price sounds enormous. Are you sure that’s right. I recently got a quote for some tree work (lots of trees, trimming, cutting smaller and a couple smaller ones taken down) which would take a couple of people a couple of days and that came in under £3000.

I’m very shocked a the charges. We had 3 quoteson a tree with two large trunks each nearly a metre diameter. No machinery access into the garden and they had to protect two greenhouses and a polytunnel. They climbed the tree and felled it bit by bit - It took three people, 2 days. £1.5k was the maximum quote. We paid just under 1000. They made the wood into logs which we kept. Have you seen the quotes they were given?

Me too…I’m still stuck at that bit on OP and can’t get past it…£10k for chopping one tree down..where the he’ll do you live..Buckingham palace? 😱😱🤯🤯🤯🤯

Their tree, their bill in my opinion.

So half of 7,500 is 3,750 and that less the 1000 you already spent is 2,750. That is what I would be giving and not a penny more.
They are lucky you are willing to pay anything, some would say your tree, your problem, but in doing that you start trouble you don't need with your neighbours.

Also look at it this way, they had no problem saying no to you over the bit of land,

Did they offer to pay half when you had your side cut?

If they wanted you to pay half you should have got your own quotes and been part of the decision.

No they didn’t! Thanks good perspective

I'd also take off that the cost to get your driver repaired where the people removing the tree damaged it.

Before you agree anything, does your drive need repairing? Are there any more costs for you due to the damage incurred?

Make your counteroffer taking all your expenses into account. I think paying half would be extremely generous, especially given you were not consulted. I would then reduce whatever you consider reasonable by the costs incurred and repairs carried out, such as the £1000 for the branches.

Is the fence actually theirs? It’s nothing to do with it being on the right hand side. That’s a myth.

Your deeds will tell you who is really for maintaining the boundary and whose fence it is. But then you also need to check who put the fence up. You could have a fence just inside the boundary all the way round, and the whole thing would belong to you and be your responsibility.

Would they have had the tree cut down if you hadn’t asked? If they did it because you wanted it then you should pay half.

Well the issue here is that as the owners of the tree, should it have been dangerous (as the OP suggests it was), then they would be liable for damage and injury caused by it. So it is their legal responsibility, whether the OP wanted it chopped down or not.

If this tree sits on a boundary line the responsibility is joint as far as I am aware?
www.rhs.org.uk/plants/types/trees/the-law

Definitely sits on their land

I think they saw you coming with the cost! We had a tree taken down by a fully insured tree surgeon which required him to be harnessed and the tree taken down in sections. It cost £500 but we logged it ourselves. I’d have expected maybe double if they logged it

I would be looking for a another tree surgeon, I've had a lot of tree work done and never paid anything like those figures, I thought there was a decimal point wrong somewhere or a rogue zero!

I think the repairs to your drive and garden should be factored in when deciding what the total costs are that should be split 50/50. I'd imagine with that and the £1000 you've already paid you won't be far off. Perhaps then offer £500 on top of that in the interest of neighbourly relations.

I'd probably send a message along the lines of 'thanks for letting me know the costs so far - we're getting quotes for the damage done on our side by the machinery etc, so we'll let you know what that comes to and then we can work everything out properly.'

I think it needs a diagram 😂

Not it falls and a branch kills a child?

Why was it falling? Was it sick?
Why was the equipment on your land and did the company say “hey we are going to ruin your drive way doing this but never mind”. Who on Earth hired them…

Bizarre.