Clients Says Her Trees Are Too Big

[Sviatoslav Tulin]

 I will butcher them while crying,but most of the time i manage to safe a tree by proper pruning for small money just cut dead branches and any odd one .

[Con]

7 hours ago, The Timber Titan said:

Few days ago i was hired by a lady  who stated that her oak trees are far too big and wanted them reduced, i was very hesitant since there was nothing wrong with them that i could see, the crown looked nice and healthy and no visible defects for ground level. So i asked why she wanted them reduced and do the trees cause her any problems.  She didnt really give any justifcation she just  replied with  "they dont cause me any problems they are just too big". In the end i polietly declined the job since i didnt see any need to reduce them.

 

But on the way back it got me thinking.

How would you deal with a client like that or similar situation and what would you do or say?

Id deal with it the same way you did.

Edited July 7 by Con

[Matthew Norman]

Hi The Timber Titan

 

Have you not been in tree work very long!? 

 

So many people assume that their trees are simpy 'too big', without giving any further explanation what they are too big for. Mostly it's blocking their light, or fouling their gutters, or giving roosts to bird to crap onto their cars from. The best ones are the clients that start their sentence with, 'I like trees, but...' 

 

I've turned down work because what was being asked would've been extremely detrimental to the tree. Years ago I turned down topping a few silver birches in the back of someone's garden, stating that they're likely to decline from the top down and start losing branches in high winds. I attended the same property last year to find that they had had the work done, and now branches were snapping out in the high winds and the tops were rotting. 

 

You decide what's best for you, your business and your finances. If you don't do it, someone else will. Be happy in your decision to walk away, and concentrate on your next job. 

 

[John Shutler]

because it’s a forest tree 

[The Timber Titan]

57 minutes ago, Matthew Norman said:

Hi The Timber Titan

 

Have you not been in tree work very long!? 

 

So many people assume that their trees are simpy 'too big', without giving any further explanation what they are too big for. Mostly it's blocking their light, or fouling their gutters, or giving roosts to bird to crap onto their cars from. The best ones are the clients that start their sentence with, 'I like trees, but...' 

 

I've turned down work because what was being asked would've been extremely detrimental to the tree. Years ago I turned down topping a few silver birches in the back of someone's garden, stating that they're likely to decline from the top down and start losing branches in high winds. I attended the same property last year to find that they had had the work done, and now branches were snapping out in the high winds and the tops were rotting. 

 

You decide what's best for you, your business and your finances. If you don't do it, someone else will. Be happy in your decision to walk away, and concentrate on your next job. 

 

Ive been doing tree work for a number of years now, ive always had the same approach to those types of clients, because i value my reputation and im very proud of my work standards, ill always explain to the client that what they want is usually wrong for the health of the tree and will usually find a middle ground with the client but i'll always refuse to butcher trees

[Gardenscape]

One of the worst types of customers are the ones that move into a property that has trees and then want to cut the lot down because they are shedding leaves and deadwood, and they have to go out in their spare time cleaning them up. Like wtf!

[daltontrees]

What's the problem? It's her tree. If you don't believe it should be reduced, buy the house off her.

 

Someone will do the work, There is no right or wrong answer, it's a matter of professional reputation and personal standards about whether any individual is willing to do it.

 

Repeat, it's her tree. Thousands of trees in the UK get reduced or removed unnecessarily every week. Much worse things happen. Social media experts treat private property as if it's public. Want to control, criticise or influence what gets done by private individuals to their private property that they inhabit, but don't want to compensate owners for having the choice taken away from them.

 

It's generally a good idea not to try and look fancy by calling customers 'clients', but in this case it definitely isn't.

Edited August 9 by daltontrees

[peds]

2 hours ago, daltontrees said:

What's the problem? It's her tree. 

 

You generally give top quality advice, but the feelings of the person expected to carry out the work are always to be taken into account as well.

 

Let's rephrase the question:

"A customer has asked me to pumice her bunions and stir the resulting scrapings into my cup-a-soup. I don't think the job is up my street, and advised her as such."

 

Walk away, let her find someone else, don't undertake any work that you wouldn't be happy doing.

 

Personally, I'll do any dirty little thing you want to a sycamore, but some other poor fella can butcher her oak trees for her. 

[manco]

23 hours ago, peds said:

 

You generally give top quality advice, but the feelings of the person expected to carry out the work are always to be taken into account as well.

 

Let's rephrase the question:

"A customer has asked me to pumice her bunions and stir the resulting scrapings into my cup-a-soup. I don't think the job is up my street, and advised her as such."

 

Walk away, let her find someone else, don't undertake any work that you wouldn't be happy doing.

 

Personally, I'll do any dirty little thing you want to a sycamore, but some other poor fella can butcher her oak trees for her. 

 

im sure someone online would pay to do that if you look on the right websites.

im not saying me, its not my thing, i mean, eww cup-a-soup!

Edited August 10 by manco

[tree-fancier123]

On 09/08/2024 at 01:10, daltontrees said:

Repeat, it's her tree.

There is a difference between legal ownership and moral responsibility - you could argue she has become a custodian of the land