Cut down tree with TPO - help!!

[Expelliarmus88]

Hi
We have just found out there was a tree in our garden that had TPO but we were never informed when buying the house. We did the garden years ago and don't even know if this tree was part of it but there are no trees in our garden anymore. Its come up now we are selling the house - what do we do ??
Thanks a lot!

You may need indemnity insurance against action by the council. It was up to you to check.

Didn't it fall down in those awful storms last year?

Plant an other tree in its place and take out indemnity insurance!

Thanks all
So stressed now
Don't want to pay 20k

Check your LPA website for all applications re your property. Could it have been the previous owner cut it down? We recently cut down (with permission) a TPO tree that had died in our garden. It happens.

Do you have photos of the garden from when you moved in?

@Collaborate thank you. I don't think we have photos sadly. I'll have a look!

As well as checking the planning applications re tree work/removal, look carefully on the historic views on Google Earth. You may find that the tree wasn't actually there when you bought the property.

Weird how on MN when a neighbour cuts down a tree with a TPO on it people are baying for the neighbour’s blood but when a poster asks for advice on how to avoid being fined for breaching a TPO everyone’s offering suggestions on how to pretend the tree just disappeared mysteriously. TPOs are generally put on large trees, old trees, or notable trees. I think it’s worth noting that if you have a big, or old, or impressive, or rare tree in your garden, it will probably have a TPO on it. It’s very easy to check with the council if you have any TPOs in your garden and well worth checking before cutting any tree down. However, if you chopped a tree down without checking I think you have to own your own problem.

I appreciate that @backinthebox and am even willing to pay the fine but need it all done within a month to not lose the chain...
Just not sure if thats possible
Think our house sale will collapse due to this :(

Did you cut it down yourselves? All reputable tree surgeons should check before acting.

surprised at some of these daft it just disappeared responses.

What do you mean you don’t know if it was there, do you not know what you cut down? If the type of tree it was was one you removed?

See if your solicitor can help. I was able to confirm details of when modifications to my property as solicitor could access old sales photos. In our area we have a regional sales site which handles a very large majority of the advertising of property though.

I've been through similar and about to again selling my parents house.

Many of their trees have been felled with all the appropriate permissions, at least another 3 have fallen/gone due to storms in the 36 years they lived there. It was tricky with the last house sale, which only had a few trees, this one may get more complicated.

Old photos with the trees in the background can be a good reference point.

What kind of tree was it op? Trees with tpos tend to be significant, so if you said I can’t recall if a large oak, blue pine, willow etc was there and if we took it down or not, you may struggle to have anyone believe you.

the type of tree it was should be all you need and that will be on the tpo.

Did you cut it down while you were living there? Trees with TPOs tend to show up as such on deeds and are fairly substantial old trees.

Nothing on the title deed...
Just checked TPO and it says tree type : SWEET
What does this mean !?
We cleared out the garden using a tree surgeon who never mentioned any of this. We didn't even know that such a thing as TPOs exist being naive FTBs :( I know thats no excuse

its not the case that trees with TPOs have to be significant, I used to live in a house with an ordinary apple tree that had one but it was a conservation area so all trees were protected. It got a weird orange fungus and we had to remove it and plant another in its place.

@Expelliarmus88 sweet chestnut?

If they’re not in a conservation area then they’re usually fairly substantial trees or have some other caveat attached.

Was the tree surgeon fully insured, licensed etc? They should have checked for TPOs - ours certainly did.

If this has come to light now you are selling, then equally it should have been spotted by the solicitor who dealt with the conveyancing when you actually bought the property. So if there is any fine to pay, surely it is due to their negligence in not uncovering the TPO in the first place. Might be worth checking.

@SirChenjins just checked his website and says fully insured, checkatrade approved , NPTC QUALIFIED etc! Shall I go back to him and ask if he checked all the trees before felling?

@EndlessMagpies I know. Should it have been in the title deed?

I agree with@EndlessMagpies this should have shown up on your deeds and/or been picked up by your tree surgeon. You’re not the ones liable here, the money you pay them include those checks.

Have you spoken to your current solicitor or the council yet?

Searches should have shown tpos, as presumably your buyers' has

@SirChenjins thank you so much , you're giving me hope. I'm just about to instruct another solicitor who deals with such matters as I don't have much faith in our property lawyers. You're right in that the money we paid insured tree surgeons should cover it surely! But possibly not as the land is ours? Ahh I can't cope with this level of stress and a little one :(

@LIZS should our previous solicitors when buying the property have informed us? If so, where would this information have been?