Tree officers recommendations?!

[Gray git]

Poisonous ones ;-)

[MATTMOSS]

Can't see what's wrong with a tree officer recommending a good tree company as long as they aren't on the take.

[beechwood]

I've done numerous jobs for new clients, after a recommendation from various TOs. Never thought it was wrong for them to make a recommendation although always assumed they recommended me and couple of others. I you do good work, offer a good service word gets round and you get recommend by all sorts of people.

[Gary Prentice]

Can't see what's wrong with a tree officer recommending a good tree company as long as they aren't on the take.

 

The problem becomes apparent when the 'openness' and 'transparency' of governance becomes lost.

 

If, on the initial inquiry, a request is made to identify suitable contractors to undertake a task - that is one thing. When a company has acted as an agent for the applicant and the TO then proposes or promotes the use of another company, well that's something different and in my opinion, unjustifiable. What reasonable conclusions would anyone come to in those circumstances?

 

If a TO attends a domestic property for a site inspection, accompanied by a contractor, the owner starts to feel that consent will only be forthcoming if that contractor is employed. I've had it happen.

 

Probably worse are those authorities whose arb teams compete in the domestic/commercial market who appear to actively promote them to the public/applicants on site visits and meetings. It's hardly a level playing field.

[Kveldssanger]

Doesn't sound all too professional. Always recommend at least three, I say.

[Gray git]

Like you say Gary it's fine for the TO to recommend several contractor at a 1st visit if no 1 has been appointed to carry out the work as hopefully by doing so the work would be carried out to a standard that everyone would be satisfied with. But as I said when I'm acting as agent and have already 'won' the work for them to suggest another is just bad practice as it makes them think I'm not a good choice.

I strongly believe as a local authority employee they should not influence a client unless it's not in the interest of the trees on bad recommendation reasons or bad work specs.

[swinny]

Also one other thing is how can people advertise as local authority approved when the councils are impartial and do not reccomend specific companies?

[jpbeaver]

Lancaster City Council have until recently had a list of approved tree contractors.

[Gary Prentice]

Also one other thing is how can people advertise as local authority approved when the councils are impartial and do not reccomend specific companies?

 

We made a local authority change its website. It listed contractors who were on the councils own tender list as 'Approved Contractors'. This suggested to the sites users that they were recommended by the authority.

 

It's a subtle difference in wording, that they were on a tender list i.e a supplier of service to the council rather than approved by the council. I suggested that we were included on the TPO Application page as a company/agent that submitted a high number of applications - but they didn't go for that:biggrin:

[hamdogg]

Also one other thing is how can people advertise as local authority approved when the councils are impartial and do not reccomend specific companies?

 

 

Most websites have that on whether they have worked for them or not