A land owner or property owner has responsibility for the trees on the site and is obliged to take “reasonable care” to monitor and ensure the safety of the trees in accordance with Occupiers Liability Act 1954/1980. Failure to carry out these surveys may be viewed as not taking reasonable care which in the event of an accident could leave the landowner open to prosecution.
This is why a survey of the site or tree report on an individual tree is carried out by a suitably qualified arboriculturalist that meets the requirements of British Standard 5837. At Beddow Tree Specialists we provide full surveys which log each tree on the site and give an appraisal of each tree with a list of recommended works. We also undertake individual tree reports as required.
The recommended works are prioritised to allow the client to see the urgency of each job. The survey is similar to an MOT for a car and is the action a landowner must take to be deemed to have taken “reasonable care” to ensure their safety. It is of course possible to make a management plan for the trees once the survey is complete which will allow an accurate tender document to be generated for quotation purposes, and also give a predictable set of costs for the short to medium term future of the tree stock management.