My overgrown hedge and who has cut it?

I think we all need to sit down and think rationally and logically more often when these things happen. It is easy enough to sort out the law by going to Citizen's Advice or a solicitor, many do 30 minute consultations for no charge.

M0nica

He must have been laughing all the way to the bank. At various times in life people get threatened with legal priceedings over all kinds of irrelevancies. You ignore them, say nothing and if they follow up, talk to a solicitor. Bullies only succeed because people allow themselves to be intimidated.

True but she couldn't be bothered with all the hassle because she wasn't 100% sure about the law - it was partly hidden behind a small hedge too. Anyway she'd made it very visible now so she won't be paying out again.

I watched a spoofy video last night on YouTube of a woman crashing her car into a wall and knocking on the door of the house and claiming the wall had hit her car 😆 It took just a second or two in shock before my brain said 'Spoof' but there are so many weird people around now I wouldn't be surprised if it actually happened.

I cannot visualise the setting at all. Is the grassy slope part of Aprilrose's garden/ property, or is a grassy verge in front of her house/property? Does she own it?
I wondered if it was someone who walked past the wall and got the brambles in his eyes, therefore cut them down.
In my village brambles overhung the narrow pavement on the road past the school; the houseowners denied they were their responsibility as they were beyond the back of their gardens; the council refused to cut them, the children walked in the road to avoid being scratched, until eventually the team of 'volunteer gardeners' cut them down every so often.

M0nica

He must have been laughing all the way to the bank. At various times in life people get threatened with legal priceedings over all kinds of irrelevancies. You ignore them, say nothing and if they follow up, talk to a solicitor. Bullies only succeed because people allow themselves to be intimidated.

That much is true for sure.

I just burst out laughing at one that one of my nasty neighbour households had me sent one time by a solicitor - and then rang and told the little trainee exactly what he'd said wrong. Funnily enough I didn't get any more letters from them....

M0nica

He must have been laughing all the way to the bank. At various times in life people get threatened with legal priceedings over all kinds of irrelevancies. You ignore them, say nothing and if they follow up, talk to a solicitor. Bullies only succeed because people allow themselves to be intimidated.

Exactly, M0nica

Of course, if her tree was hanging right over the pavement or road then perhaps. Two of our neighbours are neglecting their gardens and my friend scratched her car on their overhanging brambles, trying to ease past another parked car.

This is the kind of little job that many people are happy to do for cash in hand. I would find a handyperson as suggested above.

I have a neighbour last year whinging about one of my hedges. I made her wait until the end of the nesting season just to make a point. Now she is back again whinging about the same hedge. The gardner has done his last service visit of the year and I told him to leave it til spring. The hedge is not obscuring the public pavement - just growing out from a parking bay which some of the entitled car owners use.

I take no prisoners where whining neighbours re concerned. She is welcome to get it cut at her expense if it bothers her.

He must have been laughing all the way to the bank. At various times in life people get threatened with legal priceedings over all kinds of irrelevancies. You ignore them, say nothing and if they follow up, talk to a solicitor. Bullies only succeed because people allow themselves to be intimidated.

I cannot see how anyone damaging their car on stones, bollards or a fence of some kind which are on your land could possibly claim you are liable.

But they will. You would think they would see the edge of the road and any obstacles in their headlights even in the dark. But they don't. Or they reverse their car closer to the side of the road and don't expect obstacles and can't see them at the side. Or it's snowing (as mentioned above) and they can't see the side of the road or the obstacles in the snow.

My friend has a huge tree at the side of the entrance to her driveway. She has had to paint big white stripes in it and pin reflective signs on it after someone used her drive to reverse into and pranged the back of his car on the tree. He said the tree wasn't visible in the dark and that he had reversed onto the pavement not into her drive. Not a lot of damage but he threatened to sue her to get it fixed. I don't know whether he could really do that but she paid for the repair just to make him go away because of the possibility of greater costs.

Yes, I suggested that too.

I cannot see how anyone damaging their car on stones, bollards or a fence of some kind which are on your land could possibly claim you are liable.

ClicketyClick

I agree that putting up a boundary of some sort may be the answer but think twice about the suggestions of placing stones/boulders. The reason I say this is because my local authority view them as a trip hazard for pedestrians and can damage vehicles if they were to hit them and you could leave yourself open to claims for damages - even false claims from people with no morals. It has been known and I'd hate for you to be in that situation. They especially take a hard line if the stones/boulders are painted white because they can't be seen if covered in snow. I appreciate not every local council/parish may have the same rules but thought worth mentioning this to you AprilRose. If they were placed within your boundary maybe you'd be ok? I hope you get sorted without too much stress to you and DH

That could be a possibility then - dependant on the local authority concerned I guess.

I've seen a similar bit of land to yours - from what you say - with stripey red and white immovable bollard type things on the side of the red. Very visible and couldnt be driven over accidentally. Vehicles shouldnt hit them - as, if they did, they would have obviously been at fault as bad drivers.

I agree with Witzend that if you didn't ask for someone to do it you can't be billed for it. The local councils would/should have informed you before doing it if they did it.

If I were you I would plant it up with something like a thick hedge that might deter people from driving over it and parking. It doesn't sound as if it's obvious that it forms part of your garden because it's below the wall. If it looks like a public space that may be why people think they are entitled to park on it.

O dear, somehow the wind has blown it across the lane 🤔

The first thing you need to do is get the debris removed or it will provide cover for vermin as the weather gets colder.
See if you can find someone who will also take care of any necessary cutting back in the future. It will be a load off your mind.

Can you not just put up a sign on your wall asking people not to park on your grass at the front?

BlueBelle

If your garden is a slope how can they park on it I still can’t see the mental picture ? (I’ve now got a camper van in my head with two wheels a couple of feet higher than the other two) Either way you surely can’t have your garden hanging over onto the lane or walkway ? So they ve done you a favour once you get rid of the brambles which to me denotes anger and at leaving them there (to teach you a lesson) check your deeds as to where your garden ends and get a boundary wall /fence/or something established once and for all

Last year a camper van was almost permanently parked on my front. I didnt say anything because I didnt know who it was.

One of our neighbours had a caravan parked on their sloping drive. While they were away a homeless man moved into it and took up residence. They let him stay there until they got rid of the caravan.

Whatever- I think it's a check to go into someone else's garden, cut down plants and dump them on top of other plants. In a village, everyone usually knows the circumstances of neighbours and know that aprilrose is struggling at the moment. Most villages are friendly places.

I'm surprised this has happened without someone knocking on the door and asking if they could chop down the brambles.

They're only going to grow again anyway!

If you do ‘Next door’ maybe you could thank the person

If you had made no agreement with anyone to do it, nobody can possibly charge you, so please don’t worry on that count.

I would assume that somebody thought it all really needed doing, and that you had your hands full enough anyway.

I dare say you’ll have to pay someone to take all the prunings away, but presumably that will cost considerably less than the cutting/pruning.

I agree that putting up a boundary of some sort may be the answer but think twice about the suggestions of placing stones/boulders. The reason I say this is because my local authority view them as a trip hazard for pedestrians and can damage vehicles if they were to hit them and you could leave yourself open to claims for damages - even false claims from people with no morals. It has been known and I'd hate for you to be in that situation. They especially take a hard line if the stones/boulders are painted white because they can't be seen if covered in snow. I appreciate not every local council/parish may have the same rules but thought worth mentioning this to you AprilRose. If they were placed within your boundary maybe you'd be ok? I hope you get sorted without too much stress to you and DH

aprilrose
Why not contact your Parish Council- details should be in a village newsletter or webpage- explain what has happened and ask if they arranged to have the brambles cut down. Explain that you are elderly and have a disabled husband and are, therefore unable to remove the debris. If they say they weren’t responsible , which they probably weren’t they will surely have some suggestions of where you can go for help or even have a village handyman who could help. They may also have some suggestions for your parking problems.

If your garden is a slope how can they park on it I still can’t see the mental picture ? (I’ve now got a camper van in my head with two wheels a couple of feet higher than the other two) Either way you surely can’t have your garden hanging over onto the lane or walkway ? So they ve done you a favour once you get rid of the brambles which to me denotes anger and at leaving them there (to teach you a lesson) check your deeds as to where your garden ends and get a boundary wall /fence/or something established once and for all

aprilrose

People will park on aprilrose's front garden if the brambles are not there.

There is a lot of traffic on the lane so they want to park on her front garden because otherwise their cars might get bumped.

If this is correct, then they have darned cheek!
I'd be arranging for someone to come and put those small stone pillars along the front of my garden to stop them parking there.

Thats pretty well it. My bank at the front is a result of the garden sloping down a hill ( we are halfway up a valley). Fencing it isnt an option but I have thought several times of putting some sort of chain link out there ( others in the lane have done it but their fronts are flatter than mine. Part of it is hedged with a box hedging but the lower ( bit flatter part) is just planted .

I know the brambles might have got a bit thick and out of hand but no more so than any overgrown lane wall that divides off the fields further up. They farmer didnt cut his for a long time, maybe for the same reason?

Chain link fences can be deliberately broken - ask me how I know.....as my own was quite deliberately broken and I know exactly who is responsible for that and they refused to put matters right and go round mouthing off about me for having dared to protect my property from their incursions they wished to make.

I put up a different type of barrier - one she can't possibly pretend not to see - as it's very big and very clearly visible.

Another possibility I had in mind was lockable bollards - so they could be lowered when I require that and would form a barrier otherwise. Amazon even sells them these days - so they can be checked out. Huge boulders are a possibility too if OP doesn't require them moved for own access.

Some people can act extremely "entitled" if they want to park on one's property illicitly - I know that personally.

I think the parking troublemakers (my neighbours) eventually clicked too that I'd even block my own parking off from my own visitors too if I had to to stop the trespassing neighbours - and then my visitors would be competing with them for communal parking spaces.

I've also put up security cameras too - though that one was mainly because I kept catching neighbours trespassing in my garden on foot.

One way or another - I've stopped the "parking in my garden" problem I found my house had when I bought it.

Half of me thinks that it was rather rude of them to do it because they want to park there and the other half thinks that maybe they were being kind.
If only they'd cleared away the debris!
But perhaps they didn't have time.

As it's far to much for you to do as you have a great deal of work caring for your husband-perhaps it would be best to get someone to clear away the garden waste .
Please contact ageconcern or get a recommended gardener.Finding someone isn't that easy.
If some heavy duty black plastic sacks were put down the regrowth would be controlled .
If you don't want people parking in your space then re -establish a boundary with stones .

Thank you all for input.

No one is parking on it at the moment they have parked in front of my neighbour where his garden comes straight down onto the lane. . Cutting back my brambles was only yesterday morning or the afternoon before, so time yet to move in. Last year a camper van was almost permanently parked on my front. I didnt say anything because I didnt know who it was. I was told the owner of the van lived right down at the bottom of the village in some new houses there and I guess he/she didnt have enough room for the camper van - but it was a long way from his house to my garden - a good five minute walk. I decided it probably wasnt the person they said on those grounds.

I have looked around for someone to come and remove the brambles because I need to retrieve my plants under them. I have a couple of names to try. I just hope I do not suddenly get landed with a clearance bill I am not expecting.

People will park on aprilrose's front garden if the brambles are not there.

There is a lot of traffic on the lane so they want to park on her front garden because otherwise their cars might get bumped.

If this is correct, then they have darned cheek!
I'd be arranging for someone to come and put those small stone pillars along the front of my garden to stop them parking there.

Thats pretty well it. My bank at the front is a result of the garden sloping down a hill ( we are halfway up a valley). Fencing it isnt an option but I have thought several times of putting some sort of chain link out there ( others in the lane have done it but their fronts are flatter than mine. Part of it is hedged with a box hedging but the lower ( bit flatter part) is just planted .

I know the brambles might have got a bit thick and out of hand but no more so than any overgrown lane wall that divides off the fields further up. They farmer didnt cut his for a long time, maybe for the same reason?

There may - or may not - be more to it than as an "act of kindness".

Whatever is the case though - I think it's politic to act like one thinks it is just a case of kindness and say thank you (even if really there might have been other aspects - like ensuring OP's brambles can't put someone's eyes out by them having walked into them).

There is a house I walk past often near me and they often carelessly leave brambles poking out over the pavement from their hedge and I can look out for them - but I do wonder how anyone partially sighted is supposed to do so and the next thing OP knows is she could get a solicitors letter saying "Your brambles harmed my client - as they came right at their eye level". So she has been done a kindness whichever way you look at it - even if it's being saved from a solicitor letter about damage to someone.

I guess it's obvious why I said - "don't mention you're a local". It's not relevant and some people dislike anyone saying that - as it sounds as if they're after better treatment than everyone else (in my experience where I am now - they often are and it's been mentioned deliberately by them to try and get that better treatment...).

Avitor1 might well be right about a legal obligation to trim them back too. It would fit in with the way that, when I swopped the windows of my last house (which was straight on the street - with no front garden whatsoever) I was told they couldnt open outwards from the front sitting room window - in case someone walked into them and hurt themselves and I had to change the style I had in mind accordingly.

I have been told in the past that if hedges etc are sticking out onto a public path that it is a legal obligation to trim them back to the property line.One of the reasons was to protect blind /partially sighted people from injury.Also so that people wouldn't need to step into the roadway to avoid them.