subsidence caused by tree on our property

kelvin1000

hi, if someone could assist me,
i bought a flat with a rear garden in Aug 07, at the bottom of that garden stands a lime tree. In May 2008 i received a letter from the neighbour's insurance coy solicitor that referred to correspondence sent on 31st Jul 07 (a month before my purchase) asking for removal of the tree as it was causing subsidence to the neighbours property. After requesting details from their solicitor, it seems the problem was identified in 2005 and we were sent a copy of a survey dated May 2006 that showed evidence of possible cause coming from the tree.
we have recieved a subsequent letter asking me to sign and agree to remove the tree by 31Dec this year.
I have not signed this letter and have contacted my solicitor and my insurance company (has been the insurance company for the building for many years apparently) for advice.
my question is this (its still not clear to me who should pay for removal of said tree)... given it took their insurers/solicitors 2 years to write to the former owners of my flat (of course, they either never got the letter or just ignored it and didnt tell me), is there a case to
a) argue that they were negligent in not notifying the previous owners
earlier (also considering the first notice i personally had was almost 2years+9 months after the problem surfaced)
b) if that doesnt constitute negligence on their part shoudl this claim be settled between the respective insurance companies
or
c) i can do nothing, i should lump it and pay for the removal.

thanks for any advice
regds
kelvin1000

imfedup

Hi Kelvin, alot of Insurance companies will pay for neighbouring trees to be removed, some will pay in full and some will offer a contribution. You need to contact the neighbours representative and pleed povity, ask them to pay in full see how far you get. If the Insurance co will not pay in full they will usually then offer a contribution, you then need to obtain quotes yourself as their reps will usually approach their own companies and will be more expensive. YOu may find that by getting your own quote it will come within the contribution. Like I said NOT ALL insurers will pay for the tree removal, but some will say "in the case of hardship or holding up of the claim". Unfortunatley, you can only say that the previous occupiers were neglegent in not tellin YOU that there was a problem with the tree. Subsidence Insruance claims can take a long time to determine cause, especially if you are unsure of the actual cause and monitoring has been undertaken along with site investigations this can take about 12-18 months and then they approach the necessary people with regards to mitigation.

Also the Insurance companies will not settle between themselves, if the tree is causing problems with your property then you can claim under your own insurance. The ABI Tree Root Agreement which is in place means that a layman cannot know that a tree can cause damage, but if fail to remove the tree, the neighbours have their property fixed and the problem returns, you are no longer classed as a layman and may end up paying all costs for repairs.

I hope you can understand this, I know what I want to say but its quite complicated. You can PM me if you need any further advice.

kelvin1000

thank you for that... we had already said we cant afford it.... and their response was to send a letter asking us to commit to the 31 Dec deadline.

It will be worth us continuing the poverty angle (not an exaggeration btw !) and hope they will either pay for it or contribute... we had received a quote for £1000 in the meantime.

thanks again

imfedup

Dont give up, the tree will have to come down, at the end of the day its just a tree and there is a house at risk BUT ring the solicitors and tell them that you are not prepared to put anything in writing with regards to the tree mitigation and ask them the name of the Insurance Company company , if you let me know who they are I will let you know their policy on Third Party Tree Removal.

They should tell you who the Insurers are as this does not break data protection. If they start being funny tell them that you are currently taking advice on the subject and the sooner you have all the facts the sooner the tree will come down.

Also remember its not the neighbours fault, I have known lots of neighbours fall out over trees they are not responsible for their adjusters/solictors actions.

kelvin1000

its AXA insurance....
thanks for all this, very helpful

imfedup

Hi

This is the rule of thumb where AXA are concerened. AXA say that the TP should be pay for the removal of the tree BUT:


In certain exceptional circumstances, AXA may pay for works to neighbours’ trees. Examples of this could be as follows:


The neighbour clearly has limited financial means.



If the neighbour agrees to the required tree works but refuses to fund such works. This must not be considered as a general rule and common sense should be used.



If the costs of the neighbour’s tree works are limited and it would be clearly more economic to pay for the neighbour’s tree works than involve solicitors or undertake underpinning.


If, however, the costs of the neighbour’s tree works are significant, the matter should be immediately referred to solicitors.

Note the letter to the neighbour should advise that they should inform their Home Contents Insurers (Public Liability Insurers) of the situation. These Insurers are usually of great assistance in emphasising the duty of the neighbour to effect the recommended works, their obligation to fund such works and the potential liability if they do not co-operate.

It is difficult to give a financial value as to when such circumstances should be referred to solicitors. It is not just the costs of the tree works, there is also the issue of the claim being delayed and increased costs being incurred in this respect. As a rough guide, however, it is suggested that if the tree works exceed £1,000 then the matter should be referred to solicitors.
No payment will be made to commercial organisations, Local Authorities or other such organisation.

Where AXA are to fund removal of a tree, it is to be cut to ground level only. The works are not to include poisoning the stump or "grinding out" the stump. The customer is to manage any re-growth.

My suggestion would be to use the costs of the tree removal along with the financial status of yourself to get AXA to pay for the tree removal. Tell the solicitors that you are happy for the tree to be removed but not to fund costs. You could also speak with your own insurers just in case they may be able to pay or contribute towards the costs.

Hope this helps.

imfedup

sorry that hasnt come out very well I will try again:

imfedup

Hi

This is the rule of thumb where AXA are concerened. AXA say that the TP should be pay for the removal of the tree BUT:


In certain exceptional circumstances, AXA may pay for works to neighbours’ trees. Examples of this could be as follows:

The neighbour clearly has limited financial means.

If the neighbour agrees to the required tree works but refuses to fund such works. This must not be considered as a general rule and common sense should be used.


If the costs of the neighbour’s tree works are limited and it would be clearly more economic to pay for the neighbour’s tree works than involve solicitors or undertake underpinning.

If, however, the costs of the neighbour’s tree works are significant, the matter should be immediately referred to solicitors.

Note the letter to the neighbour should advise that they should inform their Home Contents Insurers (Public Liability Insurers) of the situation. These Insurers are usually of great assistance in emphasising the duty of the neighbour to effect the recommended works, their obligation to fund such works and the potential liability if they do not co-operate.

It is difficult to give a financial value as to when such circumstances should be referred to solicitors. It is not just the costs of the tree works, there is also the issue of the claim being delayed and increased costs being incurred in this respect. As a rough guide, however, it is suggested that if the tree works exceed £1,000 then the matter should be referred to solicitors.

No payment will be made to commercial organisations, Local Authorities or other such organisation.

Where AXA are to fund removal of a tree, it is to be cut to ground level only. The works are not to include poisoning the stump or "grinding out" the stump. The customer is to manage any re-growth.

My suggestion would be to use the costs of the tree removal along with the financial status of yourself to get AXA to pay for the tree removal. Tell the solicitors that you are happy for the tree to be removed but not to fund costs. You could also speak with your own insurers just in case they may be able to pay or contribute towards the costs.

Hope this helps.

kelvin1000

thanks, thats great.... much obliged.