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

Definitely said by people who have never tried to chop a tree before 😂

If you have a chain saw you have the other bits. You forgot ear defenders they are loud. Unless you are a gorilla an axe would never work with a big tree.

Chain saw is like a knife through butter.

I bet the landlord would be contactable if the rent was late.

Yes, then she was trapped in her home and now it appears that isn't true either.

Thanks name change- accurate.

i meant a friend with some rope and a big 4x4 - it was a knee jerk idea, didn’t seriously consider this as that would be dragging it o to the main road

Not sure that would be a wise move

Aaaanyway.

have done what i can

Did this to show work

I hope you get it fixed soon as it would really stress me out.

If you are comfortable posting the general area you are in, maybe some posters on here can help you out?

When did this tree become ‘massive’ and 10 people were needed? I think we still don’t know the size and OP suggested that she might be able to move it with one friend. I’d definitely help my neighbours to remove an obstacle, if it is physically possible and safe.

how annoying for you, I’m sorry. Unfortunately, these things happen in storms - just the worst luck that it was a tree on your road rather than in the middle of nowhere!

not much you can do other than call the council to report a blocked road, and hope that the letting agents come up trumps. If it is a public road I’d think it is the council’s job to sort this out in the first instance; whether they end up charging the landlord for it is not your problem.

when our street flooded the council came within hours, so you might get lucky although I’m sure they are having quite a busy morning after the storm.

Good luck!

What do you have against the OP? I think she needs empathy at this time.

Honestly baffles me how stupid some people on here are. The op clearly meant if the tree had fallen on public land it would be dealt with whereas in her situation she’s left trying to sort it out.
Suggesting she pops off and get an axe to chop into firewood ? Perhaps some posters are such confirmed city dwellers it’s beyond their imagination to picture a large tree and what would be needed to remove it.
Good luck getting it sorted op I would go to the council as a pp suggested and I hope your employer is sympathetic

I would call the letting agent (that you think is the correct one), and explain that you are incurring costs while the tree is there as you can’t get to work, and these costs will increase day by day, so they need to get it sorted asap. It’s not your problem whether they can or can’t get hold of the landlord. That’s their issue to resolve.

Then I would join all the local Facebook groups, and ask if anyone wants free firewood. Lots of people have log burners these days, and with the cost of fuel, you might find that locals are keen to have some free wood to burn. Where I live it would be gone in a few hours.

OP did the tree fall because of the recent storms ? If so then it isn’t the landlords responsibility to deal with any of the clean up other than on their own property. It’s classed as a act of God and you and your neighbour need to claim on your own house insurance to have it dealt with unless you can prove that the tree was diseased or otherwise dangerous and the landlord neglected that fact.

Honestly baffles me how stupid some people on here are. The op clearly meant if the tree had fallen on public land it would be dealt with whereas in her situation she’s left trying to sort it out.

💯

The letting agent is not responsible for sorting this - at most they will contact the landlord and advise what’s happened. And as mentioned upthread, if it’s an act of God and the tree has fallen because of the recent storms, then the landlord is only responsible for cleaning up their own property. Unless they can prove negligence on the part of the landlord, OP and her neighbour are responsible for clearing up the aftermath on their own properties and need to claim on their house insurance.

This sounds like a good piece of advice OP..They will be able to advise who else you could contact about this too. locally.

Also home insurance will have advice.. .but the tree is across both properties so both ends need dealing with.

Disgusting that the lettings agent won't provide contact details. They Must have the address if they managed the lettings. Remind them that in witholding they are putting your safety at risk because an ambulance or fire engine and other public services can't access your property. What if there is a gas leak???
They are costing you wages.

Ask, the LAZY WOMBATS, who work there to contact the blooming landlord their lazy selves!!!!! Put it in email. Attach picture of the tree..
edited as cross posted with other updates.

Go onto your local Facebook page explain your stuck and could anyone with a chainsaw help as the agent hasn't been able to get in touch with the landlord.

If you have any vulnerable neighbours people are generally more willing to help for free!
It just needs cutting into sections and then you can shift it - state free firewood etc.

Eh? If it's from the landlord's property it's the landlord's responsibility, and the tenants' responsibility to contact the landlord. What reason would they have to be awkward about it?

Sympathies OP.

We were once trapped by trees, huge storm, down everywhere and several houses in our street were destroyed. Trunks at least 6’ in diameter. They took down powerlines as well so we were trapped inside for 2 days with live powerlines outside. The greater area was that damaged we were in a queue so they just got police to stand guard 24/7 and we were told we were not allowed out the front of our homes or in the street.

After 2 days, electricity people came and capped the live wires. However we were still trapped in generally by the massive trees lying across the street. That was a further 3 days and then around 2am we were woken by a team who had come to start - complete with those lights that could light up professional sporting fields at night. They took 2 days to clear so we could exit the street (crews swapping 24/7 and chipping as they went which was great through the nights). All the while we had no electricity, nor internet or mobile phone service as the storm had taken our greater infrastructure in the area.

So that was 7 days trapped at home with no way to exit the street, no electricity or any form of communication. We had emergency services deliver cheap sausages and white bread daily (they got in/out by huge cherry pickers). I’m in Australia so we are all guaranteed to have gas barbies at home. Water supply was unaffected. So cheap sausages sangers and water for all meals for 7 days straight on top of it. After that was another 3 days for communication to come back and a further 2 for electricity.

Sounds terrible, but those 7 days we were trapped with no electronics is one of the things I look back on really fondly with my kids childhoods. Was actually a great time (food aside, but on the plus, very minimal cooking/clean up daily😁).

@thatsgotit

Thank goodness you are noticing the snark on this thread! I thought it was just me!

A couple of posters , especially @SwanRivers seem to be going after the OP like it’s her personal fault! She’s done nothing wrong!

A tree ( not hers) has come down across her drive, blocking her & her vehicle in… nobody associated with said tree seems at all bothered!

She has said she can’t climb over the tree, can’t shift the tree…
(and put it - where?), can’t walk or bike to work and a taxi is far too expensive on min.wage job.

But certain posters seem to be picking her post to bits.

I just don’t understand MN sometimes. I thought we were meant to be here for advice, a listening area, support etc.

It seems not today.

Hope all goes well today, OP 💐

C'mon OP, forget those dunderheads who recommend chainsaws or axes. Behave like any normal person and karate chop Tree McTreeface into handy sized logs, stack all 1000 of them at the side of the road and advertise free firewood on facebook...

To be honest I just deathstare fallen trees until they spontaneously combust and turn to ash, but that is an advanced skill, so probably out of reach of Joanna Average.

Exactly this

If the tree wasn’t damaged previously it’s seen as an act of god and the other homeowner /landlord isn’t liable. We had this issue a few years ago with a previous storm. I’m afraid it’s seen as 50/50 so you’ll have to pay to remove it if you need it moving. See what the landlord eventually says but the blame isn’t on them sadly and if they say no you’ll have to sort it if you need to get out.

The OP has told us that she meant that the friend has a 4x4 they could use to drag it with. Not that the friend could move it by hand.