Summer Boundary Disputes: Know Where You Stand
Summer is the season when neighbour relations are tested. Gardens are in full growth, households are spending far more time outdoors, and the small irritations that go unnoticed in winter turn into daily annoyances. Overhanging branches, encroaching tree roots and towering hedges are among the most common causes of boundary disputes, and they rarely have a clear cut answer.
Why boundary disputes rise in the summer
Warmer weather changes the way we use our homes. More time in the garden means more attention on what is happening at the edge of it. Trees and hedges put on most of their growth between May and September, so a boundary that looked tidy in spring can be blocking light, dropping fruit or overshadowing a patio by August. Add garden projects, fence replacements, building work and outdoor entertaining into the mix and there are simply more opportunities for disagreement.
The pattern is not unique to property. Research into when legal conflicts peak across the UK shows that different types of dispute cluster at particular points in the year, and neighbour and property issues tend to surface once people are at home and outside for longer.
Overhanging branches: what you are allowed to do
In principle, a property owner can cut back branches or roots that cross the boundary, but only as far as the boundary line itself. Leaning over to prune the rest of the tree, or stepping onto a neighbour's land to do the work, risks a claim in trespass.
There is also a point that catches many people out. Anything cut off, including fruit, still belongs to the tree's owner. Tipping clippings back over the fence is not the answer. The correct approach is to offer them back and agree what happens to them.
When trees are protected
Various protections may affect the right to trim back overhanging branches, even where they clearly extend over a boundary. Where trees sit in a conservation area, or are covered by a tree preservation order, known as a TPO, consent is needed from the local authority before any pruning or felling takes place. That applies to the tree's owner as much as it does to the neighbour.
Cutting first and asking afterwards can be expensive. Unauthorised work to a protected tree is a criminal offence and can attract a significant fine, on top of any civil claim for damage to property.
When there is a health risk involved
Even a genuine health concern does not automatically override those protections. In one long running case, a homeowner argued that a neighbouring apple tree had made her a prisoner in her own home, on the basis that fallen fruit attracted wasps and she was allergic to their sting. Cutting the tree back without agreement triggered a bitter dispute involving claims of trespass, harassment and obstruction, with legal costs reported at around £200,000.
In another example, a mother was unable to persuade her local authority to let her cut back an overhanging walnut tree, despite her young daughter having a severe nut allergy. An earlier permission had lapsed without the work being carried out, and the fresh application was refused on the basis that the work could affect the health of the tree, which the council was considering protecting with a TPO.
Both cases make the same point. The strength of the reason for wanting work done does not remove the need to follow the correct process.
Tree roots, subsidence and structural damage
Branches are only half the picture. Trees allowed to grow unchecked, or planted too close to buildings, can damage foundations, drains and boundary walls, and are a common cause of subsidence claims.
Where roots are threatening a neighbouring property, the tree's owner can be liable for the cost of remedial works, but usually only once they have been put on notice and have failed to act. Putting the concern in writing, with photographs and dates, matters as much as the concern itself.
High hedges and the two metre rule
Hedges can be just as divisive as trees, particularly the notoriously fast growing leylandii. Where an evergreen or semi-evergreen hedge of two or more trees or shrubs grows above two metres and blocks light or reasonable enjoyment of a property, the owner can be asked to reduce it.
If they refuse, a formal high hedge complaint can be made to the local council, although councils will expect to see evidence that the neighbours have tried to resolve it between themselves first, and most charge a fee for dealing with the complaint.
What to do when a neighbour will not act
Where a problem has been identified, whether that is hedge height, overhanging branches or damaging roots, and a neighbour refuses to deal with it, the usual next step is to ask the local authority to intervene. Court action comes after that, not instead of it.
Mediation is worth considering long before proceedings are issued. It is quicker, far cheaper and, importantly, tends to leave the relationship in a better state. Our dispute resolution team can advise on the strength of a position and on the most proportionate way to resolve it.
Advice from our disputes team
The more time spent in the garden inevitably leads to people noticing things that had passed them by before, but that the best approach to a boundary dispute is still a calm conversation about the problem. If that does not resolve matters, mediation should be considered before anyone rushes to court. Disputes of this kind escalate easily into personal battles, and the fallout often has more impact on the enjoyment of a property than the original problem did.
There are two further points worth bearing in mind. The first is practical: you still have to live alongside that neighbour. The second is financial. Any dispute with a neighbour has to be declared when the property is sold, which can unsettle buyers and delay a transaction. Anyone thinking of moving in the next year or two would be sensible to resolve matters before marketing the property, alongside the other steps involved in getting move ready.
Even where there is a right to trim branches or roots back to the boundary, it is still better to have a conversation first. In a conservation area, or where trees are protected by preservation orders, the council needs to be approached before any pruning starts. Without that, there is a real risk of legal action for damage to property, however obvious the nuisance appears. Where that conversation feels impossible, a professional can act as intermediary with the neighbour or with the local authority.
Talk to us
Boundary disputes are far easier to settle early. If a hedge, tree or boundary line is causing problems this summer, or if you are preparing to sell and want to deal with an issue before it escalates, speak to our dispute resolution team.
Call us on 01323 644222 or book a free initial 30 minute consultation.