Legality of cutting down an Oak Tree.

I would definately contact your local council. Even though the Oak tree might be small, it may have been there for well over 100 years.

If the tree does have a preservation order then you can get into serious trouble for felling it. From what I gather Magistrates can impose fines of up to £20,000. If they think it is serious enough i.e quite a few trees are cut down /or they feel they would exceed the £20k limit, then they can commit it to the Crown Court, where fines are unlimited. Oh and if that isn't enough they can impose an order that you replant each and every tree that you've cut down.

Few news stories to illustrate what can happen.

http://www.crewechronicle.co.uk/cre...10-000-for-cutting-down-trees-96135-27505648/

http://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk/news__events/news/november/man_fined_for_felling_trees.aspx

http://www.thisisgloucestershire.co...hopping-tree/story-11893272-detail/story.html
http://www.guardian-series.co.uk/ne...ed_for_chopping_down___80_000_worth_of_trees/
 
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Be aware that if the local authority gets so much as a sniff that you want to remove it they will slap a TPO on it. Some local authorities have a TPO online search / map, I would look there along with a planning application search of the property (you need planning permission to even do work on / near them) before you speak to the LA.
 
You were seriously going to buy a house which has a leasehold without fully comprehending what obligations/restrictions it may put on you?

You need to get your solicitor to have a look through the lease and advise you, alternatively if you haven't engaged a solicitor as yet you can go through the Leasehold Advisory Service who will provide free advice for you. http://www.lease-advice.org

Bottom line is the lease is a legal contract and if you breach any of the conditions within it you can be fined or sanctioned, forced to change things you have done and ultimately could be forced to forfeit your property. You may also be heavily restricted in what you are able to do.
 
Why did you buy a house with a lovely oak tree in it if you just want to cut the sodding thing down? :mad:

Go buy a flat or something and leave the tree for everyone else to appreciate.
Vandal.
 
anyone can put a preservation order on the tree, dont advertise the fact you are goign to cut it down just do it....

my other half is funny about trees and contacted the local council about a tree that was cut down, they said had she requested before hand an order could have been put on the tree...
 
You can still remove trees with preservation orders but you will need to follow a process and the tree will need to be seen as dead or dangerous. You are very much in the hands of the local council however. I have several trees on my land with preservation orders, they have labels on them and each one is registered so if you do simply remove one you can get a major fine so it really isn't worth doing this. We also share a lease across a number or properties and all of them and the grounds we share are full of listed oaks. Tread carefully and if it's simply killing grass you have little or no hope.
 
physichull said:
To cut a long story short, I am going to be putting in an offer for my first house tomorrow but I have a question about trees!

In the back garden of the property there is an Oak tree which shades most of the lawn and back garden area. It isn't a huge tree, but its sizeable nonetheless.

The house is actually leasehold to the local council for about 967 years to come and what I need to know is, is it legal to just go ahead and chop down a tree in your own garden, or do you have to gain special permission to do so?
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Why would you want to cut it down?? Sounds like a lovely garden :rolleyes::(

I would love to have a large oak tree in the back
 
I'm not really sure how well preservation orders are enforced sadly.

Some people near where my parents live recently sold the land in their back garden to build a house on. It would have been denied planning permission due to the tall trees which had orders on them. So they employed a dodgy 'Irish' tree company who quite happily cut them all down one day. My Mother phoned the council but they didn't even make an appearance until they were gone.

The land owners waited a few months and applied for planning permission and because the trees were no longer there, they were granted planning permission and got no penalty.
 
Take a few branches off but don't cut it down. :(

Not to mention that taking a tree out may, depending on the ground conditions, cause the ground to heave and affect the property due to water being retained by the soil and not by the tree using it.
 
Reminds me of a friend of a friend who found bats in the barn he was about to convert. He reported it, and that was the end of his barn conversion!

Seek legal advice - though I'm surprised your solicitor didn't flag it assuming you've had local searches carried out. You might think it would include the tree if subject to a Tree Preservation Order.
 
To be clear, I haven't bought the house, nor have I put in an offer. It is merely a point to consider. I'm sure my solicitor would pick up on this fact and the owner said he was unaware of an tpo on the tree. Even before I've put in an offer, do you think I would be able to see a copy of the lease?
 
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