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Neighbour cut my tree down. Don't suppose there's anything I can do?

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  • 24-02-2024 12:28pm
    #1
    actuallylike
    Registered Users Posts: 1,450 ✭✭✭


    Hello all. I have (had) a tree at the back of my garden. Admittedly it was growing quite large and had planned to prune it soon.

    Anyway, the neighbour called round and said it was leaning into her garden and was damaging her shed and could she "cut it back". I foolishly said yeah without asking to elaborate on what exactly she meant and I went back to work.

    Checked the garden later on and the whole tree is cut down, just a chain saw across the top of our boundary wall.

    All the branches is dumped in my garden (which is fine, rude but fine), but I don't think this tree is growing back.

    Is there anything thing I can do? Anything legal? I've been trying to just move on, bite my tongue, But I've just been fuming this past week. All my privacy, gone, I'm now looking straight into her kitchen.



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    #2
    JVince
    Registered Users Posts: 1,079 ✭✭✭JVince


    Nothing you can do as you gave permission.

    They must offer you the clippings.

    Plant some new trees or hedging.


    And frankly, I don't think anyone is going to be staring into your kitchen.



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    #3
    Ash.J.Williams
    Registered Users Posts: 21,009 ✭✭✭✭Ash.J.Williams


    Lack of leadership capabilities bit you on the bottom in this case



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    #4
    DopeTech
    Registered Users Posts: 6,795 ✭✭✭DopeTech


    Might sound harsh but keep your trees under control from now on and this won't happen. Nothing you can do about this one now.



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    #5
    Dial Hard
    Registered Users Posts: 13,701 ✭✭✭✭Dial Hard


    Rule no.1 OP, is never to come onto Boards looking for sympathy.

    As for your neighbour, I don't really think there's a whole lot you can do. There was a similar-ish case in the Irish Times recently and the answer was, there's little to no recourse.

    https://www.irishtimes.com/property/residential/2024/02/14/my-neighbour-has-cut-down-my-trees-what-can-i-do/

    Sucky thing for your neighbour to do.



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    #6
    looksee
    Registered Users Posts: 28,434 ✭✭✭✭looksee


    What kind of tree was it? Chances are it will re-grow, depending what it was, but it will be more like a big bush. I had a neighbour do something similar, though it was a very small tree, not invading his garden and he had to more or less climb over the bank to get at it, cut the branches back to a stump but not the trunk. I made it very clear that he should garden his garden and leave mine to me. Meanwhile the tree grew back more splendidly than it had before.

    I think the neighbour was a bit ignorant tbh, cutting off a few branches is one thing, cutting through the trunk is just bad minded.



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    #7
    actuallylike
    Registered Users Posts: 1,450 ✭✭✭actuallylike


    https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121811569#Comment_121811569

    Yup, I payed with emotion. The home page refreshers pounced. Should've known 🙂

    You're right of course, there really is nothing I can do. I'll try to be more aware of neighbour requests in the future



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    #8
    dory
    Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators Posts: 4,493 Mod ✭✭✭✭dory


    Happened me a few years ago. Neighbour didn’t ask, put his ladder over the top of the wall and leaned it on a tree that was in my garden, all leaves in my garden, didn’t block his light. He cut it about half way up. Lovely cherry blossom. Nothing one can do unfortunately.



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    #9
    handlemaster
    Registered Users Posts: 6,003 ✭✭✭handlemaster


    Every time you see your neighbour in their kitchen wave at them..


    Not alot you can do. Maybe buy some hedging if the privacy issue is a real problem



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    #10
    Ezeoul
    Registered Users Posts: 2,799 ✭✭✭Ezeoul


    https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121813489#Comment_121813489

    Wave at them..... while walking around your kitchen naked.



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    #11
    MacDanger
    Registered Users Posts: 2,599 ✭✭✭MacDanger


    As someone said earlier, there's a reasonable chance it will regrow depending on what type of tree it is - post a photo here and someone will be able to help



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    #12
    mrslancaster
    Registered Users Posts: 1,811 ✭✭✭mrslancaster



    Curious as to why there is nothing that can be done about this. It is damage or destruction to someone else's property - why are trees/hedges growing on your property any different to other items? A neighbour couldn't just lean over the wall and chop off a bit of your garden shed or the top of a sun-parasol or knock down a tree house.

    Understand that anything growing over the boundary wall can be trimmed back by a neighbour but cutting the tree down doesn't sound ok.



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    #13
    accensi0n
    Registered Users Posts: 2,776 ✭✭✭accensi0n


    https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121819574#Comment_121819574

    "Hey guard, my neighbour cut down part of my tree.

    Did you say they could?

    Yeah...

    ...."



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    #14
    dunworth1
    Registered Users Posts: 5,326 ✭✭✭dunworth1


    https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121819574#Comment_121819574

    the Neighbor asked for permission and he gave them permission to cut it.



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    #15
    Be right back
    Registered Users Posts: 6,175 ✭✭✭Be right back


    https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121819681#Comment_121819681

    To cut it back, not cut it down.



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    #16
    highdef
    Registered Users Posts: 6,240 ✭✭✭highdef


    https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121819694#Comment_121819694

    Going by what the OP has said, the trunk of the tree is still in the ground therefore the tree has only been cut back. It has not been cut down. To me, cut down means that the tree is gone/uprooted and no longer in the ground. If the tree is of a type that will regrow, the neighbour has simply coppiced the tree.



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    #17
    looksee
    Registered Users Posts: 28,434 ✭✭✭✭looksee


    There's coppicing and there's bad minded coppicing, without regard to whether the tree is suitable for coppicing.



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