Cutting conifers overhanging neighbour.

[r-englefield]

Can you please tell me if I am responsible for cutting and trimming conifers in neighbours garden, he said it is damaging his fence. I have told him that anything over his side he can cut but he said it is our responsibility to do it.

[TWR]

You want to get this sorted ASA my elderly neighbour had a problem with her over the fence neighbour about a conifer, it was his hedge but cost her £250 to get trimmed as this Asian person would not help, If it's your conifer & it needs trimming can you not go into his / her garden with their permission to trim it? that will keep things getting out of hand.

[237SJ]

I recently asked the landlord of the house next to me if he could trim back his laylandii as it was now over the fence and halfway to engulfing my garden shed. I was talking to his gardener who was arranging it and he said that the landlord is not responsible for cutting it back where it overhangs my garden. That`s my responsibility apparently. It was a job for a tree surgeon and I said that I didn`t see why I would have to pay to sort out someone else`s tree. The gardener agreed but said that`s the way it is. Luckily, the landlord is a nice guy and sorted his tree out. If I had cut it myself, I could "offer" him the branches back but he wasn`t obliged to accept them. I`m not sure how it stands if the trunks of someone`s tree is damaging the fence though.

[ChuckFickens]

you don't have to cut your overhanging branches and if they want them cut back they'll have to do it themselves (only back as far as the boundary line), although if they incur a cost in doing so they could try and reclaim this back from you in the small claim courts.

Although why are you being funny about this, they can cut them if they want so it's not like you refusing to do it is going to stop them being cut back, surely for the sake of good relations with your neighbour it would be better to help out rather than be difficult about it.

[andy-hughes]

In the interests of neighbourly relations, I'd ask him if it's Ok for you to pop round and trim the conifers on his side.

Yes it is his responsibility, but why start a potential war of attrition when it's easily avoided.

[gingejbee]

It's not your responsibility - but you have got to live next door to them, and (as above) these situations can get out of hand quickly.

[r-englefield]

Thanks for all the advice, the guy has lived there for 3 years and now we are building flats on the site I think he is just trying to get out of the cost of getting in a tree surgeon. we have been told by the planning dept that because they give screenage to neighbouring properties we are not to cut them but obviously we cannot stop neighbours cutting them their side if they cause damage to their fences.

[tonywiltshire]

The strict legal position is farcical and action on the strict legal position is not recommended.
If branches of your neighbours trees, plants or roots overhang or spread out below your garden you are entitled to cut them off at the boundary without reference to your neighbour, you must take care not to damage the tree or plant. Both branches or their natural attachments remain the property of your neighbour, but your neighbour is unable to enter your property, without your permission and collect their property and you are unable to pick them up or use them without their consent. Your legal right is to let them rot on your property. In Lemmon v Webb 1895 Lord Macnaughten ruled “A man is not bound to permit a neighbour’s trees to overhang the surface of his land”

Thankfully good sense rules in most cases.

[bodyboarder]

in a similar situation, i was advised that if my neighbour wanted me to trim the hedge on his side of the fence, then he would have to give me written permission/request to do it, at a time mutually convenient, and absolving me of any accidental damage caused in the process.... i sent him a letter.. of which i kept a copy, advising him of this and he got his strimmer out and decimated the hedge..... no winners there!!!

[ladybirder]

Can I just point out that this time of the year is not a good time to be cutting hedges because of birds nesting in them. And if you disturb them you are breaking the law.

[Hopkirk]

I have a radical suggestion - get rid of the awful things totally.

[cassa333]

If the council has said they are a good screen and shouldn't be cut then you may have to check they do not have atpo on them. (Although I wouldn't have them on conifers :()

If they have a tpo then the neighbour cannot cut them back with out permission from the council.

Do the neighbourly thing and cut them back within any restriction there may be and stop being a developers @rse.