Need Help: Neighbour's Tree about to Fall onto Our Private Electricity Pole

mashedpotato on 23/06/2016 - 20:25
Last edited 23/06/2016 - 22:00 by 1 other user

This is my friend's situation, but he seems to be in a very sticky position. Please help…!

The situation is as follows:
Neighbour's dead tree, about 8-9m tall, that's in neighbours front garden, is about to fall onto our side.
The problem is that when it falls, it will hit our private electricity pole that supplies the electricity to our house.

Talk to your neighbour?
- I have talked to the neighbour, but he didn't care because it was not going to fall to his side. He also said he can arrange it to be removed, which costs around $1000, IF we agree to pay for it.

Talk to the local council?
- I have called the local council about it, but they said that they cannot do anything until it falls down, and also because the tree is in my neighbour's land.

Talk to the energy company?
- I have called energy company, but they said they cannot do anything about the tree. But if it does fall down, they will have to cut down the power to my house because it's danger to the public.

Here are the images:
http://imgur.com/a/U22MT

What should my friend do..?

Home & Garden

Comments

  • djones145 on 23/06/2016 - 20:31
    +3

    get some rope, push it up the tree, and make it lean towards his house
    he'll get it fixed then

    • scrimshaw on 23/06/2016 - 21:57
      +3

      The tree will fall, the wire will get cut, there (might be) sparks flying and the tree catches on fire, spreads across the bush and it burns down his house.

      hehehe

  • holdenmg on 23/06/2016 - 20:58

    Contact the NSW SES State Headquarters on (02) 4251 6111 for general enquiries.

    • [Deactivated] on 24/06/2016 - 07:58
      +1

      And they will pass it on to the local unit. If it was my unit, I would tell you to liase with council and a private contractor to get it removed. SES stands for State EMEREGENCY service.

  • pinchies on 23/06/2016 - 21:07

    I feel like if its on their property their insurance would be the one responsible for repairs?? No idea what the legal situation is.

    • pinchies on 23/06/2016 - 22:39

      http://www.wollongong.nsw.gov.au/services/household/trees/Pa…
      "Property owners are encouraged to cooperate where a branch overhangs a property boundary. However legal advice may need to be sought regarding any liability arising from damage caused by trees."

      I think you should have a chat your neighbours insurance company…

      And get something in writing!

  • subywagon on 23/06/2016 - 22:21
    +3

    Hit them up for damages once it falls and cuts power.

    If all else fails, bikies.

  • symo on 23/06/2016 - 22:34

    Have a chat to your insurance company.

  • Glider on 23/06/2016 - 22:35

    Usually if your neighbours tree falls on your stuff it's your problem. However, if there was an obvious problem that your neighbour was aware of before it fell, there is the prospect of claiming damages from them.

    If you're not willing to pay for it to be lopped, you could have a qualified tree surgeon / arborist come out and give you a report on it. If the report states it is in serious danger of falling and damaging your property you can send a lawyer-y letter including the report to your neighbour (keep a copy) officially advising them of the problem and requesting that the rectify it as they will be held accountable for damage caused by it. Then if they don't do anything, and it does fall, you can attempt to claim damages from them.

    However, they don't HAVE to act on your letter, and the tree will still fall, and it will still cost you a fortune and inconvenience to fix it. If you don't have insurance you can try small claims court if you have the evidence they knew it was an accident waiting to happen. If you have insurance then they should fix it regardless and if you've done the letter thing then they could chase the neighbour to recoup their costs.

    So you need to decide if you're going to try the letter thing and see if that gets them moving, or decide if it's better value to you to just pay for the lopping to save yourself the hassle later or wait for the inevitable and accept the inconvenience and have insurance pay for it to get fixed.

  • symo on 23/06/2016 - 22:38
    -1

    BTW, if SES attends and the crown of the tree or tree trunk is too close to power lines they will request to have power cut-off before proceeding.

    However do call SES especially if storm damage is suspected!

  • pais on 23/06/2016 - 23:30

    If a tree is in good condition and falls down, it's going to be classed as an act of god (i.e. nobody's fault). OTOH, having a dead tree precariously leaning towards power lines that the owner has foreknowledge of is a very different thing. I would a. document your photos and the the time this was taken, b. issue written notice about the tree so that you have it on record (or at minimum, make note of when your conversations took place), c. call your insurer followed by the SES.

    FWIW, it shouldn't cost $1,000 to remove that one tree. Find a local guy and pay him in cash. Remember you don't need it destumped, you just need it not to knock out your power. Your neighbour is a person that you'll (presumably) need to have an ongoing relationship with, so if you can avoid escalating a situation (even though he's clearly in the wrong), it's probably better to do so.

  • spal on 24/06/2016 - 05:26
    +1

    SES in VIC aren't allowed to cut down trees threatening to fall. They would only cross cut felled trees. SES wouldn't attend unless it's an emergency. This would be classified as maintenance job. Again close to power lines SES wouldn't operate, even if power is cut. NSW maybe different, but be prepared to hear what I said.
    You're best bet would be to get your neighbour's permission and get the tree professionally trimmed enough to make it safe for you. Don't get into cash in hand cheap tradie situation, as if the tree then falls on the neighbour's house or on the tradie or a passerby you wifi have to wear it.
    Not a great situation to be in.
    Maybe see if you negotiate with the neighbour to pay for to make it safe for you, and they pay the rest to have the tree taken down. This way it is the neighbour who is getting the job done and he wears it if things go pear shaped.

  • chumlee on 24/06/2016 - 06:17

    You have a claim against your neighbour for costs when tree falls. You need to run the civil action in vcat or your equivalent in your state

  • Nugs on 24/06/2016 - 06:44

    from the images, it looks like it wont strike the pole, but fall past it.

    am I missing something?

    • nanonoise on 24/06/2016 - 07:09

      It looks like a fall straight through the power cables.

  • blitz on 24/06/2016 - 08:12
    +1

    I don't see how this is an SES matter…

  • [Deactivated] on 24/06/2016 - 08:20
    +5

    There are a few comments in here about the NSW SES. Having spent 25 years+ in the service, and being in charge of a Local Government unit, I would like to clarify what we do. The views here are my views, as thet relate to my unit. Some units operate differently, and it is up to each unit as to what they do or don't do, as long as we meet our charter.

    1) we are the organisation that responds to storms, floods and Tsunamis.
    We are also the accredited response organisation for Road Crash, Vertical Rescue, Flood Rescue in some areas.

    2) We will do the minimum necessary when we arrive to make safe.
    This may be that we simply clear the driveway, and leave the debris wherever it landed.
    When you have multiple jobs durig a storm every minute is important.

    3) If it is not an emergency we will not complete the job.

    4) A tree damaged by the storm that may collapse at some time in the future is not necessarily an emergency.
    In the above example the tree is dead. If it fell over my opininion would be because it was dead, not because of the storm.

    5) Similalry a leaking roof may or may not be due to poor maintenance. When I walk into a home and see mould on the roof, I know it has been leaking for some time. I am not saying I won't try and help, but I am saying this is poor maintenance.

    6) If power is involved with a fallen tree we wont touch it until the lines are de-energised. Usually this means Ausgrid does the job. SOmetimes they de-enegise and wait for us to cut the tree, then return to re-string the power. Often during a storm this can take some time as we wait for them and then they wait for us, and the owner waits for everybody!

    7) Often for house flooding, there is a small blocked drain - poke around with a broom handle to try and fix it.

    8) Often with leaking, your gutters are blocked (backflow) - make sure they are cleaned out regualrly.
    It may also be a design issue, where 2 roofs meet in a valley it is easy for a 'dam' to form.

    9) Often when we respond we will not fix the problem straight away.
    In a thunder storm the safest place to be is on the ground, especially when there is lightening.
    Safety ALWAYS comes first.

    • spal on 26/06/2016 - 06:23

      Hi,
      Thank you for making it clear. It is pretty much the same with VIC SES. Safety first, will not do any preventative maintenance, will help out in an emergency. All units are volunteer run, a large part of the funding is sourced by volunteers from community donations, including for large capital projects. Most communities have nice things to say and are generous. In VIC local councils provide support for a number of units. You may have seen in the news some councils are withdrawing funding for their local units.
      BTW been in the task force deployment to NSW last year. Took away some nice memories from this. 25 Years of service requires a lot of commitment and putting service before self. Hats off.
      Thanks.

  • Name on 02/07/2016 - 07:49

    I don't know who your friends local council is, but on the Gold Coast there is a nuisance tree form you can lodge with council to complain officially. Council can then force the owner to act on it.

    Happened at the place I was renting. Neighbour came up to me all angry about the tree, I'm like.. I'm renting, not my problem. They went and lodged the form, few weeks later the owner had the tree cut down.

    This was about 8 years ago..

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