trees
Tree felling and removal
£150 to £350 fells a small tree under five metres, £400 to £700 a medium one, and £1,200 to £4,800 a specimen over twenty metres. Sectional dismantling beside a house pushes past £3,500. Stump removal is nearly always priced separately.
What this covers
What it costs. Height, access and what sits underneath set the felling price. Full cost breakdown.
What the job covers
- Felling in one piece where there is room
- Sectional dismantling over buildings and fences
- Removing storm-damaged and unstable trees
- Arranging the notice or consent a tree needs
- Logging, chipping or taking the timber away
Worth knowing
Cutting down, topping, lopping or uprooting a tree with a preservation order on it without consent carries an unlimited fine, and the court must take account of any money saved by doing it. The old £20,000 cap went on 12 March 2015.
Town and Country Planning Act 1990, section 210, as amended 12 March 2015
What is involved
Felling splits into two methods and the method sets the bill. Straight felling drops a whole stem into open ground and suits a field edge or a long garden with nothing under the canopy. Sectional dismantling takes the tree down in pieces, each limb roped and lowered past whatever sits below, and that is what almost every suburban garden needs. Rigging a large ash over a garage can occupy three people for two days where the same tree in a paddock would take a morning.
Height bands drive the published price lists. Under eight metres with clear access sits at £150 to £800, eight to fifteen metres at £400 to £1,800, and anything above fifteen metres at £650 to £3,500. Species matters at the upper end because density changes handling time: an oak runs £2,800 to £4,800 while a conifer of similar height is £250 to £1,500. Firms disagree sharply at the small end, with quotes for the same job ranging from £90 to £800.
Legal checks come before the quote, not after. Work on a tree under a Tree Preservation Order without written consent is a criminal offence under section 210 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990, and since 12 March 2015 the fine in England and Wales has been unlimited in either court. Trees in a conservation area need six weeks' notice to the council, with exemptions for stems no thicker than 75mm measured over the bark at 1.5 metres above ground.
Choosing someone for the job
Does the quote say straight fell or sectional dismantle, and which limbs come down on ropes? What happens to the stump, and is grinding included or quoted separately? Has anyone confirmed the tree is free of a preservation order and outside a conservation area? Will logs be left cut to length for the householder, and what is the charge for chipping and carting everything away instead?
Common questions
Can a healthy tree in a private garden be felled?
Owners may fell a healthy garden tree unless a preservation order, conservation area designation, planning condition or restrictive covenant applies. Council planning departments confirm the first two free of charge, usually within a few days.
What is left behind after felling?
A stump cut low to the ground remains, typically 75mm to 300mm proud. Grinding it out is a separate operation using different machinery, so it appears as its own line on an honest quote.