A Neighbour's Conifer Tree

The_3rd_Zebu

There is a conifer tree in my neighbours garden that has just been left to grow and grow over the years.
It has now become so huge that I fear that if it fell in the direction of  my house it would cause severe damage.

If this were to happen would house insurance cover the cost of the damage?
If so would it be the neighbour's insurance that would pay?
Or would it be my insurance that would pay?

TadleyBaggie

You would probably have to claim from your insurance who in turn would attempt to recover it from their insurance. However unless the neighbour can be seen as culpable, recovery may not be possible. 

Albermarle

Have you asked your neighbour to cut it down, or at least reduce its height ?

Cherryfudge

We had large conifers and during storms they were bending alarmingly towards the neighbour's house so we got a tree surgeon to reduce the height for safety's sake. The neighbour hadn't mentioned it as a concern but I was around for the big storm in the 1980s and have seen colossal old trees brought down on cars and in one case, very close to a house that would have been smashed in had it fallen at a different angle. I think that's made me wary, though I love trees.

I'd suggest you get a few photos of the tree in windy weather: is it bending in your direction? It it's too big to be flexible, which way does the wind blow? How tall is it and how far from the house? Does your insurance mention trees and proximity to buildings? Once you've got the data, have a casual word with your neighbour: 'Wasn't it windy last night! I must admit I was a bit concerned about your tree, if the wind uprooted it, I imagine it could fall on one of our houses. Have you had a tree surgeon check it recently?'

Obviously, how they respond would determine your next course of action.

Rdwill

You may need to declare tall trees that are close to your house. 

Check your policy to make sure that's not a requirement. 

Mr.Generous

Rdwill said:

You may need to declare tall trees that are close to your house. 

Check your policy to make sure that's not a requirement. 

Yeah it is on mine.

TELLIT01

There's a large conifer in the garden of the house next door but one to us it must be well over 40 feet high.  Our neighbour's parents live in a lodge at the bottom of their garden, right next to the tree.  It's far enough from our house not to cause us a problem but I'd be very nervous if I lived in that lodge. 

A young couple have just moved into the house with the tree and are spending every penny they have on modernising the house.  I very much doubt they could afford to take the tree out even if they wanted to.

The_3rd_Zebu

Thank you for the responses

. . Here are few more details

The tree was planted around 50 years ago in a back garden that backs onto my own back garden.
It was planted very close to the boundary fence.
My back garden is 100 foot long.  -   That means my house is 100 foot from that fence.
Over the years the branches from that tree have obviously overhung the end of my garden more and more.

About 2 years ago  one of the lower heavy branches split away and fell across my garden. 
That one was about 25 feet long and very large so the neighbour  ( whose tree it was ) came round and together we cut it up with a chain-saw and removed it.
At that time he said that he knew he needed to do something about the whole tree as the fence itself has now become dilapidated but he said that his finances were not good at that time so it would have to wait.

More recently another lower branch split away but onto his OWN garden and he has been tackling that by himself with a chain-saw. That one was such a huge and heavy branch that I notice he has now left the job only half done with a pile of sawn up logs still left there alongside to the bit of that split-branch that is still hanging there.

Even in the last two years I believe that  tree is still getting taller. It is difficult to estimate the height of a tree without a theodolite but I think that tree might be around 100 feet tall and with the high winds we've been getting it worries me. 

I asked a tree surgeon, who was doing a job nearby, how much he would charge to remove that tree ? and he gave an estimate of £6,000.  But it shouldn't be me that should have to pay! 

TELLIT01

It isn't you that has to pay.  The property owner is responsible and as the tree has now lost 2 major branches there must be a concern that the entire tree is dangerous.  I'm not saying it is, but the owner really does need to get expert advise.  I have sympathy with them over the cost of removing it.

100 feet would be incredibly tall but it could certainly be 50 to 60 feet tall, which is high enough.

FreeBear

The_3rd_Zebu said: Even in the last two years I believe that  tree is still getting taller. It is difficult to estimate the height of a tree without a theodolite but I think that tree might be around 100 feet tall and with the high winds we've been getting it worries me.

If you don't mind a bit of math - https://bigtrees.forestry.ubc.ca/measuring-trees/height-measurements/

Then again, there is an app to do it all for you - https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=kr.sira.measure

If there is enough space to fell the tree safely in one go, I would have thought it wouldn't be too expensive to chop down.

TELLIT01

FreeBear said:

The_3rd_Zebu said: Even in the last two years I believe that  tree is still getting taller. It is difficult to estimate the height of a tree without a theodolite but I think that tree might be around 100 feet tall and with the high winds we've been getting it worries me.

If you don't mind a bit of math - https://bigtrees.forestry.ubc.ca/measuring-trees/height-measurements/

Then again, there is an app to do it all for you - https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=kr.sira.measure

If there is enough space to fell the tree safely in one go, I would have thought it wouldn't be too expensive to chop down.

Chopping it down is only one small part of the job.  Cutting up a tree of somewhere between 50 and 100 feet tall will be a pretty big task too.  In a domestic garden I suspect the chances of dropping a tree of that size in one piece will be somewhat limited.  The conifer I mentioned in my previous post is at least 40 feet high with a spread of at least 30 feet.