What is the legal height of a neighbours hedge?

[janey]

It all depends on the way the LA breaks up it's departments. The Arb Section of the LA's I've worked for don't deal with High Hedges as they come under the Legal department. The TO's don't even take queries as all correspondence bypasses them.

 

Leaving plenty of time for all those emergency leaves - in - gutters calls

[spudulike]

I would forget the law and go round to the neighbour and offer to help him cut it to an agreed height, this sort of issue can blow out of all sort of proportion and end up in legally expensive cases - we moved because of a neighbour dispute.

 

If you can, do it amicably as the only winner in arguments are the lawyers!

 

This is the UK site that I gained much knowledge from - Garden Law - Trees and Roots

 

2m seems the legal height, the one round our garden is around 15' or around 4m but cut it regularly and it affords good privacy - no complaints in 6 years and would not appreciate neighbours shouting the odds but would be more receptive to a reasonable request and an invitation round to see someone elses land and point of view.

 

If all else fails - set it on fire.......only joking:laugh1:

 

Spud

[dandkgroundcare]

as far as i know there is no legal height and with the la's i worked for they have not enforced any under hedge height act as they cant afford it with the reduced budgets as the act is not worth the paper it is printed on as it was attached to anti social laws the only problems with height which relates to fencing around corner properties

[tommer9]

I was recently dragged into a customers neighbourly dispute over a leylandii hedge. It seems that only after all courses of mediation betwen concerned parties have been exhausted that a court will get involved. It is then looked at on a case by case basis, taking into account the distance from the house, the effect on the amount of light getting to the house, etc etc. Apparently the commonest outcome is that the owner of a hedge who refuses to be neighbourly will have an ASBO awarded to them, but both parties are usually told to sort their differences out first, the court only getting involved as a last resort. There also appears to be quite a variation in the approach taken by councils across the country.

[18 stoner]

We were stopped yesterday for REDUCING one!

 

Another story i guess

[RobRainford]

I was taking about 6 inches off a hedge, it was about 30" thick and was using a saw with a 24" bar to walk along and chop it to where I wanted it. Out comes the neighbour kicking of because I'm cutting into their half of the hedge! I just tidied up what I had cut and left a stupid looking step. It was being taken down ffrom about 6' to about 5'6". If you wanted you could look over but you didn't need to. The customer wanted it to be manageable for herself which is what it was after I'd done it.

 

The neighbour took me upstairs in her house to make me look at how stupid I'd made the hedge look. When she was making herself look more stupid tbh.

[likeitorlumpit]

neighbours eh?

just get on!

[skyhuck]

From what i can gather from a tree officer i know the high hedges act is not worth the paper it's written on!! I don't know for sure but i don't know if it's that easy to enforce is it? There must be some tree officers on here that know:confused1:

 

Works fine round here, its given me a fair bit of work.

[ry2]

Only if they are conifer trees. Decidiouse trees cannot be classed as a hedge.

 

 

What about beech hedges?

[janey]

What about beech hedges?

 

Not covered by Hi Hedge Regs. Even though it may be a hedge. Clear ?