Overhanging Trees from Neighbour

[psarinuk]

Hi,
I have recently moved into a house and am now looking to tidy my garden this summer.

I've these largish trees hanging over the fence and possibly causing them to tilt the fence too. I requested my neighbour to tend to them as they are on his property and therefore belong to him. He has already trimmed them nicely in his garden.

After initially agreeing to get it done, the neighbour now says that they are on my side of property and he has no legal obligation to trim/ cut them.

I just wonder to learn where I stand with respect to law. Even if I cut the overhanging branches with a chain saw, I've 2 questions:
1. Who owns the waste branches? They would be a nightmare for me to dispose.
2. What about the sunlight? Is there a height limit my neighbour has to adhere to? Asking as the grass right beneath the tree seems to be balding.
Many thanks.

.

 

[Odds]

Your neighbour's right, it's up to you. You can ask them if they want the cuttings back but in this case i'll bet they say 'no', leaving you to dispose of them. A 'right to light' is a myth.

 

[psarinuk]

But the cuttings belong to him, no? So why should I have to dispose them?
My other neighbour says to lop them to his garden after cutting

 

[Alec_t]

It's my understanding that in law you are entitled to remove overhanging vegetation but it belongs to the neighbour. You can therefore return it to him for disposal.
Perhaps your local Council could help if there's a dispute?

 

[Odds]

But the cuttings belong to him, no? So why should I have to dispose them?
My other neighbour says to lop them to his garden after cutting

That's the way to go to avoid having a lot of waste to dispose of...."oops! another branch fell on their side"

 

[jjimjam]

Are the trees are pushing over the fence? Is it your fence?

 

[psarinuk]

Are the trees are pushing over the fence? Is it your fence?

The trees are definitely pushing over as the fence is tilting into my garden but I am not sure on the ownership.

 

[Koolpc]

Cut everything that overhangs to your side and lob it over the fence to his side. That is ok to do...

 

[lostinthelight]

You can cut overhanging branches but should offer them back. If the offer is refused and you subsequently lob them back you are committing the act if littering

 

[Koolpc]

You can cut overhanging branches but should offer them back. If the offer is refused and you subsequently lob them back you are committing the act if littering

Rubbish.

Its his tree. The branches belong to him. He has a duty of care. His responsibility to get rid as he has not been bothered to respect his neighbours boundary!

 

[lostinthelight]

Rubbish.

Its his tree. The branches belong to him. He has a duty of care. His responsibility to get rid as he has not been bothered to respect his neighbours boundary!

Care to back that up with a credible link?

 

[Koolpc]

Care to back that up with a credible link?

I got the info from some squirrels!

 

[big-all]

my understanding was it's their tree and their material, so has to be returned
bbbbuuuuttt in these hard times, perhaps "free logs to a good home" may shift them for free iff in doubt

 

[robinbanks]

Inform your neighbour of your intent before you make any cuts. Make it clear that you only plan to trim the branches overhanging your side. Ask them ahead of time if they want the branches returned; if they do, ask where they'd like them put. If they do not want them, you should dispose of them responsibly; your local recycling centre should have a collection bin for them if you don't have a green bin service already that will take them. Those tree pictures show the stems to be quite chunky and I don't doubt you'll end up with quite an obviously misshapen tree at the end of trimming them all to the boundary vertical - you might need to suggest your neighbour engage in some trimming themselves to even it up and, as you'll be removing quite a bit of weight from one side only, they may want to do it in the interests of safety for the occupants/contents of their garden.

Agree with big-all for the thicker stems; log em and offer them out (perhaps offering to log and return them to the neighbour for their woodburner will take some of the sting out of any potential argument), or buy a fire pit and season them if you can make use of them for garden parties. The finer branches and leaf can be chipped (chippers can be hired) and composted or taken away whole in a trailer/van.

If your neighbour gets up in their tree about it and tells you you can't, tell them that you have a legal right to trim the tree in the interests of reducing a nuisance. You can only act from your side of the fence unless they permit you to enter their land but if you needed to climb into the tree and can do so from your side, that's acceptable.

The boundary line would likely be taken as the base of the fence, unless the fence's location is contested/asserted to not represent the boundary. Strive to avoid getting into a boundary dispute too; they cause real headaches when selling. Right to light arguments might succeed but in the cases of slow growing vegetation it's hard to establish when the loss occurred. In your particular case you might have better luck making a complaint under the "high hedges" legislation - see https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/types/hedges/nuisance-overgrown

To avoid further legal consequences, make sure that you're not risking damage or disturbance to nesting birds, and that you don't kill the tree by your actions..

 

[psarinuk]

Isn't there a height requirement that the hedges on fence need to adhere to? My other neighbour tells me its 2 meters.