station Posted March 4, 2014 Report Share Posted March 4, 2014 After a bit of advice whilst sat here fuming over a cup of tea. Our house borders the grounds of a former elderly persons home which has been vacant for 2 years. Developer bought it and now we are to have 22 houses built on it - 3 of which will back onto the length of our garden which is 105 feet long. You can guess where this post is going - When they seeked planning permission we said Ok so long as none of the borderline trees come down. This was agreed and the plans reflected this once they were produced - we have electronic copies. Now 1 is (was) definitely within our border and the other 4 just over - if you go off the original fence line. 1 of these 4 was in direct line from our bedrooms side window thus providing some degree of privacy as the nearest new build house will be some 50 feet away with its side elevation facing our side. Returned home today at 4.30pm and the contractors on site have cut the ******* lot down to stumps. Went over and had a rant and the guy in charge was apologetic and said they had been instructed to cut all the tress down. I pointed out the fact that 1 was on our land and he said he will get the site manager to call round tomorrow morning at 8am. Anyone any experience of this? Where do we stand and any pointers where to go from here. Many thanks for any advice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TIGHTCHOKE Posted March 4, 2014 Report Share Posted March 4, 2014 I wonder what a tree is worth? How will they attempt to make it up to you? Could it become a police matter as it is your tree that has been felled? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arjimlad Posted March 4, 2014 Report Share Posted March 4, 2014 Take photos and email them to Building Control at your council. Do you have legal expenses insurance on your household insurance policies ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aris Posted March 4, 2014 Report Share Posted March 4, 2014 (edited) Speak to the planning officer at your local council. Start planting Leylandii. Sue contractor who cut your tree down. Should fit within the remit of small claims. Edited March 4, 2014 by aris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
malkiserow Posted March 4, 2014 Report Share Posted March 4, 2014 Check for TPO's Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kdubya Posted March 4, 2014 Report Share Posted March 4, 2014 seen this done before,developers "made a mistake" yeah right get legal advice and take (if you can) the scumbags big time,get the local press involved and create holy hell. KW Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mungler Posted March 4, 2014 Report Share Posted March 4, 2014 (edited) Take photos and phone the police. It's criminal damage if a tree on your property has been dropped without your permission. Get a crime reference number and get the old bill onto it - it's what you pay your taxes for. EDIT The value of the tree will be sub £10k and "small claims". I doubt you will get legal expenses cover for a civil claim - moreover it won't get you any decent sum of money back or your old tree back. Go the police route first (it won't cost you a penny) and see what the result is. My bet, someone will put their hands upto a caution under the heading of "big mistake we're sorry" and with that look for compo - the price of fully established replacement trees (etc) Then go to planning / building control and demand the enforcement / imposition of a condition that the developer makes good on boundary planting with established trees (and recite the police prosecution). Job jobbed, who do you want the invoice made out to? Edited March 4, 2014 by Mungler Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amateur Posted March 4, 2014 Report Share Posted March 4, 2014 Sounds like they are in for replacing like with like - how big was the tree? They had better start digging the hole now Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluesj Posted March 4, 2014 Report Share Posted March 4, 2014 As said "mistakes can be made and very sorry sure we can come to some arrangement to sort this out"! Its a lot cheaper to pay someone off after the event than it is the fight it in the first place Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris 1985 Posted March 4, 2014 Report Share Posted March 4, 2014 Not sure where you stand as far as the one on your property (i.e whether it's a police or civil matter), but have a look at a copy of their planning permission. If the trees were supposed to be retained, there should be a condition requiring them to do so. If that is the case, they would be in breach of condition and the Council can take action against them. If there wasn't a condition on the planning permission and the trees are not protected (TPO), then there may nothing to stop them getting rid of them unfortunately. Planning conditions can't be imposed by the Council retrospectively once the permission has been granted. Obviously the one on your property is a different matter, as it isn't theirs to remove. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
station Posted March 4, 2014 Author Report Share Posted March 4, 2014 Many thanks to all for the replies and advice. We will photograph and pursue legally - wife is now asking her father who is a fountain of knowledge as he used to sit on a planning committee many years ago. The trees were a mixture of cherry and hawthorn and were all 25 years plus old. Even if we only sort something for the 1 that was ours we will now pursue for compensation in one form or another. Thanks again. ATB. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kes Posted March 4, 2014 Report Share Posted March 4, 2014 Take Munglers advice and decide what you want - do you want them prosecuted for criminal damage ? I would just to establish that they are in the wrong and then decide what type of fencing/hedging you want and crucify them for it. Also go to your local Council and ask them what type of control over development do they call this why have they not enforced the approved plans. I would be fuming and the trees that went back would be exactly what I wanted age and size and type and the rest of the hedge would be planted on their side with mature holly. Police first - now in fact - see the man in the morning and tell him to expect a visit from the police. What is he going to offer to keep you on-side and its going to cost - either that or a criminal record if Mungler is correct Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
malkiserow Posted March 4, 2014 Report Share Posted March 4, 2014 Why not go for replacement with fair sized trees? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subsonicnat Posted March 4, 2014 Report Share Posted March 4, 2014 Get Really ******** and put the Leylandii up, 4 years, you will hate them yourself.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
figgy Posted March 4, 2014 Report Share Posted March 4, 2014 people have been given hefty fines for this and made to replace with trees of same type and size. Very expensive to culprit if enforced. figgy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amateur Posted March 4, 2014 Report Share Posted March 4, 2014 Get Really ******** and put the Leylandii up, 4 years, you will hate them yourself.. Why replace a cherry with Leylandii? A nicely expensive mature, replacement cherry is the way to go. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aris Posted March 4, 2014 Report Share Posted March 4, 2014 Why replace a cherry with Leylandii? A nicely expensive mature, replacement cherry is the way to go. Leylandii if they don't replace the trees cut from teir own land. Depends which way the sun sets though - you don't want to shade your own property. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
studley Posted March 4, 2014 Report Share Posted March 4, 2014 Check the deeds to your house detailing the boundary line. Defining a big red line drawn around the area of your house could cause difficulties as the width of a red marker pen to the scale of a map may be several meters wide. You mentioned the 'original boundary' if a fence is no longer in place then defining who owns what land may require you to prove that it originally was yours in the first place. If you can prove the tree was cut down on your property then you will be able to pursue a civil claim for tresspass for the act of entering your land without permission. Secondly you may be able to make a case for a criminal prosecution if yu can prove they have committed criminal damage. Prove ownership of your boundary and only expect to be returned to the position you were in prior to the trees being cut down i.e. a replacement tree line Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beretta06 Posted March 4, 2014 Report Share Posted March 4, 2014 The fines tend to be pointless for large developers. A few years ago, Wimpey homes were fined in Oxforshire for ripping out a row of mature (protected) beech trees. They pleaded ignorance and were fined £2000 per tree - I seem to recall there being 16 of them. On an estate that was worth £30 million to them, it gained them extra land to build three more houses, so the fine was well worth the court appearance. Another favourite is to blame the sub contractor they employed to fell the trees, which puts the caution elsewhere. None of this helps you though, I hope they can replant your trees and compensate accordingly. http://www.majestictrees.co.uk/portfolio/delivery-and-planting-services.html Give Majestic Trees a call. They can 'plant' trees up to 40ft tall - proper mature things. Maybe they can use them to put some decent replacements in, so no need to wait. If the site is in really early development stages, access will be easy too. Best of luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
station Posted March 4, 2014 Author Report Share Posted March 4, 2014 Check the deeds to your house detailing the boundary line. Defining a big red line drawn around the area of your house could cause difficulties as the width of a red marker pen to the scale of a map may be several meters wide. You mentioned the 'original boundary' if a fence is no longer in place then defining who owns what land may require you to prove that it originally was yours in the first place. If you can prove the tree was cut down on your property then you will be able to pursue a civil claim for tresspass for the act of entering your land without permission. Secondly you may be able to make a case for a criminal prosecution if yu can prove they have committed criminal damage. Prove ownership of your boundary and only expect to be returned to the position you were in prior to the trees being cut down i.e. a replacement tree line The original boundary fence is still in place (although in very poor condition) it is a wooden rail picket fence with 4' concrete posts at 12' centres. Our tree is definitely our side of this fence, we erected a taller fence some years ago to tidy things up as the EPH would not allow (or pay) us to alter the original fence. In essence we lost 18" of land and left our tree between the 2 fences. The other annoying thing is that a guy came around before Christmas and sprayed bright blue crosses on all the trees to be felled. None of the ones (obviously including ours) bordering our property were marked. Cheers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woodcock11 Posted March 4, 2014 Report Share Posted March 4, 2014 Many thanks to all for the replies and advice. We will photograph and pursue legally - wife is now asking her father who is a fountain of knowledge as he used to sit on a planning committee many years ago. The trees were a mixture of cherry and hawthorn and were all 25 years plus old. Even if we only sort something for the 1 that was ours we will now pursue for compensation in one form or another. Thanks again. ATB. I really feel for you - those felled trees were your good friends. Barcham Trees supply mature specimens and are very very good - choose ones that are very very expensive and demand that the developers pay for them and plant them to your satisfaction http://www.barcham.co.uk/?gclid=CICwzsq--bwCFSfmwgodNkoAFQ Developers = Bloody Swines The best of luck...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
guest1957 Posted March 4, 2014 Report Share Posted March 4, 2014 If you go down a replant route have them agree in writing to a maintainence and replant period e.g. ten years as plantings of mature specimens have a relatively high failure rate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mungler Posted March 4, 2014 Report Share Posted March 4, 2014 (edited) If you go down a replant route have them agree in writing to a maintainence and replant period e.g. ten years as plantings of mature specimens have a relatively high failure rate. As above. It also stops them getting clever with the "Round Up" in the time to come..... Get any maintenance / replacement warranty from the parent development company - most developers run specific purpose vehicles i.e. once the development is done, the company is emptied and binned off. Like the double glazing companies of old, getting a 10 year warranty from a company that doesn't last 3 years is a rum do. Also, most developers have to go back to vary their planning permissions along the way - more houses, a change of scheme and so forth. That's when the planners can put the boot in and condition for trees. Bear in mind there is an element of "inevitable" about all of this - don't upset the developer too much or you might get all the social housing at the bottom of your garden, along with a kids playground and a car park for the locals to smoke pot and do wheel spins in at night Edited March 4, 2014 by Mungler Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ack-ack Posted March 4, 2014 Report Share Posted March 4, 2014 I'd be proper slashed off if that happened to me, especially if i'd been cool with the application. Did they leave you any logs? Lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
station Posted March 4, 2014 Author Report Share Posted March 4, 2014 I'd be proper slashed off if that happened to me, especially if i'd been cool with the application. Did they leave you any logs? Lol Strangely enough the father in law asked the same ! Unfortunately for him our BT line does not have a swear filter !!! ATB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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