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Posted By: Elizabeth Trees and applying to council to remove them - 5th Aug 2013 11:05pm
My garden has many mature trees in it. A couple of them are oaks. I do not like the idea of having any cut down and know that I have to apply to WBC for the permission to do anything to them.

Last week the bloke responsible for giving the okay came round and gave us the thumbs up to remove a huge lime tree (ugly tree anyway) However, when we asked him about one of the oak trees too, he just flatly refused to allow anything to be done.

Personally I feel that the oak tree is too top heavy as most of the foliage and branches from lower down the trunk have been removed (before we moved in) and the trunk is quite slender.

Although it wasn't too windy today, I was watching as it swayed in the breeze and in my opinion I feel that in a strong gust, with the tree being so out of balance and having a thin trunk it's a possibility it may snap and fall on the house.
Here's the hypothetical question. IF it did fall and damage our house, would we be able to sue the council and get them to pay for damage for not allowing us to cut it down, if we could prove that we'd previously mentioned it was not safe (quoting the health & safety crap they're always banging on about these days)

As I said, I'm loathed to have it cut down as it is a beautiful tree, but as nice as it is, I don't want it coming through the roof anytime soon!
Posted By: valli Re: Trees and applying to council to remove them - 5th Aug 2013 11:38pm
Do you live in a council house.Or is it private as there is a company that is taking trees down in Prenton for elderly tenants the company is Amenity tree company.It may help that you Lived here before and that you have now come home to retire to U K.The council will pay for council tenants but not privatly owned
ok,
Elizabeth gets in touch with Amenity tree company,
tree company rings council, council say Elizabeth has already
been told she cant get them cut down. The end.
or..
Elizabeth rings tree company and pays them to chop down tree.
3 weeks later council man passes and notices no tree. He knocks on her door and Elizabeth says the tree fairy must of called in the night. Mr council man says please come visit us and you can pay a nice fine at the same time.
Or am I just taking too many meds again?
No, it's a private house and I will have to fork out and pay myself.
The question is, if I am refused permission to cut down an oak tree that I feel is unsafe and then it does fall down during a storm, could I then go back to the council and claim off them for the damage because of their negligence as I'd told them of the risk it posed?
Originally Posted by ZipperClub
ok,
Elizabeth gets in touch with Amenity tree company,
tree company rings council, council say Elizabeth has already
been told she cant get them cut down. The end.
or..
Elizabeth rings tree company and pays them to chop down tree.
3 weeks later council man passes and notices no tree. He knocks on her door and Elizabeth says the tree fairy must of called in the night. Mr council man says please come visit us and you can pay a nice fine at the same time.
Or am I just taking too many meds again?


Too many meds I'm thinking ! I know that no legit tree felling company will cut down a tree without me showing that I've had written permission.

The tree is unsafe in my opinion, council have already said I cannot touch it because it's an oak tree. I am not going to cut it down and risk a fine BUT if it falls after I've kept on telling them it is unsafe, is the damage it causes the responsibility of my insurance or the council for being negligent and not listening to my concerns?
I was wondering why Valli answered as his whole post was a waste of time. If you cant chop it down, you cant chop it down. So why recommend a firm that chops down trees, perhaps he`s the owner?
Posted By: valli Re: Trees and applying to council to remove them - 6th Aug 2013 12:11am
Have you got insurance.You will be covered by this if wind blows it down.Council tenants pay indirectly through their rents.Wirral council are so skint they have had to close essential services for Disabled people in Moreton cross.
Going back to your original question, I think any tree which falls of its own accord, without humans giving it a hand, is classed as an act of god. So, only your insurance MAY cover it. I`d check in the morning to be sure, but I doubt if you could get any money of the council :-(
Posted By: valli Re: Trees and applying to council to remove them - 6th Aug 2013 12:30am
Zipperclub Hi last time I Looked I was still female and no I am not a tree company.
Valli, A 1000 apologies, I dont know why just had you as a male. I must of lost my touch. Must be the change of life, if I ever had one lol
Posted By: muzzy2 Re: Trees and applying to council to remove them - 6th Aug 2013 6:56am
Do your trees have a Conservation order on them?
I thought that if not, you could do what you wanted with them.
The council seem to MAKE people cut trees and hedges if neighbours complain I've noticed in news reports usually.
Posted By: Nomad Re: Trees and applying to council to remove them - 6th Aug 2013 7:16am
Could it not be pruned?

make it less top heavy?
Posted By: Gibbo Re: Trees and applying to council to remove them - 6th Aug 2013 9:49am
That's what I was thinking. You need to keep on top of tree maintenance, not when its too late and the tree is too big to do anything, or in danger of falling.
Originally Posted by Nomad
Could it not be pruned?

make it less top heavy?


To quote Mr Bowman from the council "you cannot touch the oak tree in anyway at all"

So no, it can't be pruned.
Originally Posted by Gibbo
That's what I was thinking. You need to keep on top of tree maintenance, not when its too late and the tree is too big to do anything, or in danger of falling.


We can't do anything to it at all, plus regarding tree maintenance, we've only had the house about 4 months so the previous owners are the ones who didn't take care of things unfortunately
Originally Posted by muzzy2
Do your trees have a Conservation order on them?
I thought that if not, you could do what you wanted with them.
The council seem to MAKE people cut trees and hedges if neighbours complain I've noticed in news reports usually.


I think the oaks do have a conservation order on them yes
Posted By: muzzy2 Re: Trees and applying to council to remove them - 6th Aug 2013 10:19am
Have you looked at wirral.gov tree preservation
Your tree may not have an actual Tree Preservation Order on it.
Hi Elizabeth,I had a large Oak tree 6ft.away from my property, and similar to yours was very large and 60-70ft high.Best thing to do,phone Wirral Borough Council,give them your details (address),and they will tell you if there is a preservation order in force.If not get your chainsaw out.Mine is now in my garden shed and garage,waiting to be put to good use in the log burner.Good Luck.
Do you live in a conservation area too ? - that loads extra issues on to the preservation order...

Have a similar issue to you in our back - but do go easy on the trees - you can rapidly change the character of an area by injudicious hacking (not accusing you of that !!) - just glad you are thinking about it at length - our 'avenue' (a tree-lined road - by definition)only has 3 trees left in the front gardens - mine and next doors - and the rest of the street looks very bare and a little unwelcoming.
Posted By: granny Re: Trees and applying to council to remove them - 6th Aug 2013 4:10pm
I thought that all Oak trees had a preservation order on them, due to the vast number of years they take to grow.Can't agree with just chopping it down like someone else has done. Maybe wrong but according to a Welsh authority all trees that have a trunk larger than 3ft in diameter, are also covered by preservation. There can be massive fine for taking some trees down , up to £100,000, one chap was fined £125,000. So it's not so smart to just 'chop them down'.
I'm going to keep my eye on it when it gets windy and see just how much it sways. If it begins to look dangerous then I'll be onto the council again to get permission to remove it
Sorry Granny, firstly,I don't live in Wales,secondly,when the said Oak tree started interfering with the integrity of the footings to my property, what would you expect me to do?.Live in a Tree House?.
Posted By: granny Re: Trees and applying to council to remove them - 8th Aug 2013 9:14am
Originally Posted by tankrat22
Sorry Granny, firstly,I don't live in Wales,secondly,when the said Oak tree started interfering with the integrity of the footings to my property, what would you expect me to do?.Live in a Tree House?.


Now, now, Tankrat, calm down.Didn't mean to upset, just thought some should know what the consequences could be, as there are a lot of people out there who like to tell tales on their neighbours!
You might need to chill a little and what better way to do it. If you could live in a tree house like this, would you? An Englishman's(not Welsh) home is his castle. Have a look at some of the others too, wonderful!
Oh,...and could I have the West Wing please, darling? smile

http://tryingtobalancethemadness.wo...tree-houses-more-than-a-bucket-of-nails/






Attached picture tree-houses16.jpg
Attached picture dream-tree-houses-3.png
Posted By: granny Re: Trees and applying to council to remove them - 8th Aug 2013 9:40am

New tree preservation legislation came into force of April 2012.
Interesting to read .

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/6111/2127793.pdf
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