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TREE MAINTENANCE AGREEMENTS
Tree Maintenance:
We offer flexible tree maintenance programmes and high quality after-care services. We keep records of all trees we carry out work on, and contact is made at an agreed time in the future in order that we can repeat recommended procedures.
Owners of any tree, or group of trees, have a statutory duty to maintain their trees, with a legal requirement to have knowledge of those trees above that of the layman. Basically, if a tree causes damage or injury, the owner or their agent is liable.
Neglected trees are dangerous and can potentially cause serious personal injury and structural damage to property, with an associated cost of liability claims and adverse publicity. The ENGLISH TREE Company appreciates that, in the real world, this responsibility is unrealistic for the layman to shoulder without professional help.
We specialise in pro-active tree management, and offer a comprehensive 3-year tree maintenance programme to enable owners to discharge their duty and negate any possible risk. If you choose this option we can cost in to the first service call, any immediate tree works that require urgent attention in order to spread the cost over the 3 year term.
• A comprehensive survey is carried out and all tree stock is logged and precise positions identified.
• Any necessary work is specified and costed to cover a 3-year term.
• A clear, written quotation is forwarded to the client detailing full specification of the works.
• Upon acceptance, the 3 year term of work is scheduled into 6 half-yearly service calls.
• Urgent work is prioritised early on in the term and, on every call, a visual inspection is made of the remaining tree stock to identify any immediate danger.
• In the unlikely event of emergency, additional call-outs are free, and fully included in the quoted price for all trees covered by the agreement.
Payment can be made annually in advance for the full 3-year term of cover with a 5% net discount, or by monthly DDR installments.
Once your agreement is in force, The ENGLISH TREE Company takes over all responsibility for the tree stock with no action necessary from the client.
If you own or manage trees, or are concerned about their condition and care, a maintenance agreement with The ENGLISH TREE Company will ensure that you are fully compliant with the law, and your trees are maintained to professional standards with easily-budgeted costs, placing the legal responsibility with us.
All TPO/Conservation area restrictions are fully managed under this agreement.
Tree Preservation Orders (TPOs)/Conservation Area Applications:
Tree Preservation Orders and Conservation Area protections are created by Local Planning Authorities (LPAs) to protect any specific trees or whole areas they consider to have exceptional amenity or historic value, i.e. those trees which have a significant impact on their local environment.
The principal effect of the TPO is to prohibit the willful damage or destruction of trees, and the cutting down, uprooting, topping or lopping of trees without the LPA's consent.
Any tree in a Conservation Area or protected by a TPO, cannot be pruned or felled without giving the appropriate notice and gaining the written consent of the Local Planning Authority. There are a few exceptions, but these can be complicated for those who are not familiar with the procedures. Any breach of this order carries a penalty of up to £20,000, if convicted in a Magistrate’s Court. For more serious cases, the offender may be liable to an unlimited fine if convicted in the Crown Court.
A Tree Preservation Order takes away none of the responsibility of the owner or agent for any remedial or maintenance needs, or any damage caused by dangerous trees to persons or property, and it is therefore imperative that regular inspections are carried out in order to minimise risk. (Please see our section on ‘Tree Maintenance’ and ‘Consultancy’.)
The ENGLISH TREE Company is fully conversant with all the requirements of the Town and Country Planning (Trees) Regulations 1999, which came into force on 2 August, 1999. These regulations require the submission of specific information with detailed site plans in support of any application to carry out works to protected trees, including specialist expert reports.
The ENGLISH TREE Company has many years of experience in liaising with local planners, and is skilled at accurately assessing the level of work that will receive approval. Once appointed, all work involved in obtaining permission is carried out by ourselves at no additional cost to the quotation, inclusive of any necessary site meetings with the planners and associated fees.
