Do you get written permission to use neighbor's property?

[802climber]

Do you get written permission, or just verbal?

What do you have them sign while avoiding scaring them off?

I am just talking using their place for landing zone, cleanup, etc..

 

[KenJax Tree]

This is what can happen when you use the neighbors driveway.
http://m.clickondetroit.com/news/ti...its/-/16732600/21709886/-/5pf29p/-/index.html

The crane was in the neighbors driveway when the guy in the bucket cut off a chunk WAY too big. This was just a verbal agreement but they were lucky the neighbor was really cool about it.

I know these hacks and i'm not suprised this hasn't happened sooner.
Sent from my AutoTune carb

 

[2treeornot2tree]

Guess someone doesnt know how to use a green log weight chart. Must have been a pretty big piece. That looked like a 30 or 40 ton crane.

I sonetimes use the neighbors property if it is the only way.

 

[pdqdl]

If you don't, you had better plan on big problems someday.

I did a job for a prominent advertising company a few years back. They had trees growing up on the highway right of way that needed to be eliminated to improve the view of their billboard. The work was on a huge hill, and was rather inaccessible from the highway side of the work.

We knocked on a lady's door, and asked her if we would be able to use her yard and driveway for access. We explained that we were clearing brush from the highway side of the fence, and that we would be happy to do some clearing/trimming on her side of the fence to compensate her for any inconvenience. She was happy with that plan, and we agreed to eliminate a bunch of weed trees in her yard and to prune the trees back from her roof. All seemed perfect.

When we cleared the highway property, she realized that her "privacy" had been diminished. When she found out that we were working for the billboard company instead of the highway department, she hired a scum sucking bottom feeding lawyer. She denied ever speaking to us and sued for around $100,000.00.

She claimed about $2000 for each little weed tree eliminated, and they even were claiming each weed tree in her yard that was on the highway right of way. Fortunately, there was a marker post in her yard that clearly said where that line was. Honestly! The scum sucking lawyer had "experts" that counted each little 1/2" weed tree stump in her yard AND on the DOT right-of-way. Then the billboard company had to hire their own expert to refute the value of the trees and the damaged plant count.

The billboard company expected me to cover the claim, despite the fact that I had written exactly what I was going to do in the contract they signed. In the final outcome, they and my insurance company settled for somewhere around $50,000.00, and my insurance company paid about 1/2 of the bill.

I told everybody involved to not protect me, let her sue me, and I will see her in court. I had witnesses, too. No matter...it was out of my hands. The billboard company was really mad at me, as though I didn't specifically tell them in writing what my plan was. They still call me for estimates on big projects, then they go do it themselves anyway. I only get the really foul jobs that their guys feel unqualified for.

So...you had better put it in writing if you are going onto the neighbors property! Quite frankly, I would recommend before and after photo's too, just in case.

 

[futbalfantic]

All depends on what you'll be doing in the yard. But never the less I'm pretty sure you are liable for "damages" as you are under contract be it verbal or written.


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[beastmaster]

We normally just get a verbal. Lots of times will compensate them with a little trim or removal. We alway take photos of any cracks or broken stuff we might be blamed for down the road. We treat them as hosts and us as guest on their property and explain every thing that were going to do and what possibility if any that some thing could go wrong.
And if any thing is damaged or broke its repaired before we leave to their satisfaction if possible.
So far all we ever been libel for are a few fence rails and once we buried a truck full of wood to the hubs on these peoples side yard. by the time we pulled the truck out there was massive ruts where once was a green lawn. We came back a few days later and filled the ruts and laid new sod.
Things get more complicated with big equipment. Outrigger brake off a piece of the driveway, or crank a pipe or septic tank, it could get expansive quick. Big chunks are like bunker busters, they'll transfer energy down ward. Just remember,"no good deed will go un punished", A simple job can turn into a nightmare like what happened to pdqdl

 

[treeclimber101]

I find that allowing the neighbor to shoulder the "permission " burden is much better , I tell you what I need and you get it right with them , I always give the worst case scenario , like " his driveways got cracks , my truck is 19K it's prolly gonna be worse when we leave " kinda deal and if alls well the so be it

 

[pdqdl]

I too, rely on the customer to arrange permission; but not for big truck usage.

No matter where you put it, the tree service will always be responsible for whatever damage they do. If that is the customers drive, you will have to fix it. If that is the public sidewalk, it will still be yours. This will not be any less true for the neighbors driveway.

I have never told a customer that they should get ready for me to break up their driveway. That is why they hire me: they don't trust the other hacks with the lower price to do the job properly. Sometimes, I am even the lowest bidder.

 

[treeclimber101]

That's the difference between us , apparently I am more upfront , unless your coming in with a helicopter your odds of breaking #### aren't much lower then mine ! And believe me I always do my best to be the best I can be .

 

[2treeornot2tree]

That's the difference between us , apparently I am more upfront , unless your coming in with a helicopter your odds of breaking #### aren't much lower then mine ! And believe me I always do my best to be the best I can be .

I have multiple times told a customer I may crack there sidewalk if I drive over it especially with a full chip truck. I give them the choose informing them that it will be quite a bit more to move everything to the road. Only problem I have ever had, the sidewalk didnt have the required amount of stone under it.

 

[pdqdl]

No helicopters, just ropes & a port-a-wrap.

I don't have any huge heavy trucks, so I don't need to worry about breaking the pavement with them.

 

[treeclimber101]

I am thrilled I do mostly commercial

 

[pdqdl]

So do I, but what has that got to do with it? Is it ok to break commercial properties' driveway?

I really wish someone had told me before now. I've been doing all that extra work for no good reason. :bang:

 

[treeclimber101]

Ya mean parking lots , I am not talking about your local dentist office attached to his house , I work at office complexes ,restaurants ,home improvement stores ,movie theaters . Yes it's a whole different world , and honestly if I tear up a lawn it gets fixed , crack a sidewalk it gets replaced , no offense that's the cost of business sometimes . But hey you know that I'm sure already

 

[treeclimber101]

And honestly I am no scum .... people that use us know I am a very straight person , a hand shake is enough and a contract or stupid permission slip isn't needed

 

[pdqdl]

I never presumed otherwise. I don't think it is possible to run a small business and stay in business...unless you are willing to do the hard work and keep your word about what you tell people you will do.

Having a bad rep is hard to get past. When the customer hears poor referrals, they will just call someone else. Before too long, the phone doesn't ring very often.

BTW: I do have a 19k truck; it's more like 34k when it is loaded to the gills and towing a chipper. I don't consider that a heavy truck, and I have never broken a driveway with it (I hope:msp_confused. For the most part, we try to keep it off of sidewalks; I have other equipment for that.

 

[treeclimber101]

That's awesome , the point of my comment is I am always forthright with the possibilities when we bring our equipment on areas damaged previously or old , ie cracked driveways , wet or soggy lawns , up steep hills , working around old sheds and things of that nature . Again to answer the original question if I am hired and need to access the work via someone else's property I insist that the homeowner that hires us ask , and explain fully what my intentions are first . If they choose to call me for my explanation that's fine but the customers must make the first contact

 

[treeclimber101]

I don't want the neighbor in any way shape or form thinking I owe him anything or that he is allowing me to do work and make money using access from his property , he is allowing the contractor his neighbor has chosen to remove the tree that's it . Then when and if they ask me for anything I don't feel at all obligated to them .

 

[pdqdl]

I didn't get that point in the beginning. A good one!

 

[OLD OAK]

I find that allowing the neighbor to shoulder the "permission " burden is much better , I tell you what I need and you get it right with them , I always give the worst case scenario , like " his driveways got cracks , my truck is 19K it's prolly gonna be worse when we leave " kinda deal and if alls well the so be it

Did that about 2 years ago. Had to remove a large pine tree about 8 ft from customers home [side yard] with a lean over the home. Anyway- My customer and the neighbors driveway were 4 ft apart and my customers driveway stopped at the house but the neighbors stopped about 10 ft from the tree, see where this is going. So i told my customer to get permission for us to use his driveway. Customer called me that night said neighbor said No problem. We removed the tree the next week, no problems. Neighbors driveway was undamaged by us, it had some cracks but they had been there for years. Neighbor calls me that night and says we cracked his driveway and now wants a new one, says he is a cop and do i want to go to court and fight it out because he will win. I told him he knew his driveway had some small cracks before we used it. He said that did not matter because we used it. I called my insurance and gave them this guys info and told them the hole story. Long story short my insurance company paid him and i paid the $1000.00 delectable.