Neighbours fallen tree has trapped me and my neighbour in our homes

[FinanceHo]

The drive we share is completely blocked by this behemoth tree-

neighbour has said they rent and the clear up is nothing to do with them

i I can’t get to work

any advice

I’m fairly certain if I got a friend the drag the tree off into the main road it would get shifted fairly soon.

anyone had similar

I hesitate to say this, since I understand that you want your privacy, but I wonder whether a call to the press might make a difference?

Did you speak to the letting agent's branch manager?

The obstruction…

Take plenty of photos and a video, showing evidence of your vehicle being blocked in. Then I'd go to small claims to the LL for loss of earnings. Possibly an amount per day for every day that your car is blocked in too.

I know you don't have the LL's details, but the Letting's Agent should be able to pass on messages for you.

If your local fire station has a non-emergency line, you could contact them to see if they would help? Or ask online for someone local if they can come and chainsaw it up to at least give clearance for your vehicle. They can have some free wood as payment.

You could try contacting your home insurance for advice, but not sure if they can find out the other house's insurers without the LL's name though.

ansons.law/ansons-insights/fallen-trees-responsibility

Well OP could offer it to the landlord first if she had any way of getting in contact with them, perhaps a message via the letting agent.

Hopefully OP can get her home insurance to pay for a tree surgeon though as that would be best.

Yes - though if contacting the landlord then probably just tell him to "sort it".......

Have you not rung your own insurance company?? They will deal with the tree and bill the actual owner of it

Your local council will have the owners details . I'm confident they would help out in this instance .

It happens here , but then I live in a very deprived area so I guess people helping each other is the norm

Afterthought, you can get ownership details on Land registry on-line, not a short term solution but at least you'll know where to send the bill.

Sorry OP but this thread has had me howling. The responses have been so unhelpful and unsympathetic! The demands for photos and diagrams and angrily declaring that OP should be able to move it single handedly. 😂

My God, why do you so desperately need to see a photo. It's a big tree on a driveway. Use your imagination.

Well no, it's not their job to sort the fallen tree, but it absolutely is their job to contact the landlord when there is a maintenance issue. Obviously they had already done this as the letting agent are aware so why didn't they just say that instead of being hostile? I'll never understand people who don't want to judge get along with their neighbours.

It sounds like you've identified the correct letting agent but it's one of those uninvolved landlords that installed tenants as cash cows and fucks off abroad, taking no responsibility.

Good luck OP x

If she won't cooperate by making contact with her landlord, your next step should be going to your local council's website.
There should be a public register of approved landlords. I know councils can vary a lot, but that information should be a matter of public record. You just search by address.
If her address isn't listed with landlord details, then I'd be surprised that a decent letting agency would even look at having the property on their books.
You can also contact you local councillor for advice and assistance. And you definitely need to contact your local fire service, as the tree's obstructing access.
I know that none of the above is of immediate help to you, but something has to give. Hope everything works out x

Where I live (not UK) there is a volunteer run government funded organisation that helps with things like this. If your roof is damaged they’ll come and secure it with tarps etc. we once had a massive branch come down in our drive blocking it and they came within an hour and chopped it up and moved it aside. We still had to arrange disposal but they restored access. Can you call your council and find out whether there are any services like this?

Any mention of burning wood on local facebook pages results in lots of angry posts about pollution/smokey smell/cancer. I wouldn’t risk it.

Contact your own home insurer and explain what has happened. They are there to help even if the damage is caused by a responsible third party (or if there is nobody responsible, when it's known as an "external fortuitous event"). It might well be that they will pay out for your immediate loss (taxis etc) and then go to next door's insurer to settle up. They will advise you what you can reasonably claim (taxi yes, chauffeur-driven Bentley no) and what action you need to take about the blockage.

get your saw out; get a friend to help preferrably male and make a hole in the middle so you can get out. Work from home till its sorted get the landlords number and call him and ask him to get it done as a matter or urgency.

If the agent is unhelpful tell them you will contact their regulator. The address should be on their website (by law). That should get their attention. You can also get the LLs address on the Land Registry website.

However the first port of call as many posters have stated is your own insurer

I see what you did there! 😆

Where is Paul Bunyan and Babe when you need them?

I've been laughing right along with you. There have been some very empathetic and helpful posters and even some with a sense of humor, though, so it's not all mind-boggling.

The very first post describes the tree as a "behemoth".

OP later clarified her friend might be able to move it with a 4x4 and ropes.

Both points suggest the tree isn't tiny.

If it was so easy for her drag, she wouldn’t have been wasted her time here.

I suppose in some areas it would! Though if I was to offer free firewood in my local group I'd have a queue down the road and be the new town hero