Tree Killer – Seeking Advice on Dealing with Toxic Neighbours

[mitchiner]

I mean if its going on for a long time I would think just having a talk to them over coffee would help.seems like they are freehold owners if they've been living there for a long time so i would advise not reporting them to the police since you will be stuck with them for a long time to come

 

[HeadNun]

If you read the thread properly, you’ll see there is no reasoning with people like this. They are not interested in conflict resolution.

 

[FellbriggSam]

19 hours ago, mitchiner said:

I mean if its going on for a long time I would think just having a talk to them over coffee would help.seems like they are freehold owners if they've been living there for a long time so i would advise not reporting them to the police since you will be stuck with them for a long time to come

 

He did mention it's share of freehold, I’d be very cautious with that. It can turn into a nightmare if relationships with neighbours break down.

My brother had a share of freehold in a flat in West Hampstead, and when he needed to sell, the neighbour refused to sign the transfer of the freehold. What followed was over two years of legal battles, spiralling costs and constant stress. He lost several potential buyers, and the whole sale fell through just as he got a job offer in another city. It was a complete disaster.

The neighbour was stubborn and uncooperative, doing everything they could to delay the process. It ended in legal deadlock, and there was very little anyone could do without their cooperation. At that point, the TA6 form becomes the least of your worries; it’s the TR1 form that matters. Without the other freeholder’s signature on that, you’re stuck.

After seeing what my brother went through, I’d never touch a share of freehold again. When things go wrong, they can go really wrong. If you have a share of freehold, you need a respectful and reasonable relationship with the others involved; otherwise, it can be costly, stressful and exhausting.

Sounds like these neighbours can’t be reasoned with. There’s really no coming back from something like this unless they genuinely apologise and replace the trees and plants they ruined. One small consolation is that people who behave like this are usually miserable behind closed doors. If they were truly happy, they’d just get on with their lives instead of trying to make other people’s lives difficult. And the irony is, they’re being incredibly short-sighted. This kind of behaviour almost always backfires.

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[maddison]

crazy! hope it all worked out in the end

[FellbriggSam]

On 22/07/2025 at 01:09, maddison said:

crazy! hope it all worked out in the end

Yeah, it did work out in the end, but it was way more stressful and expensive than it needed to be. He lost money. He had higher offers early on, but those buyers pulled out because of all the delays. On top of that, he spent a fortune on legal fees trying to get the neighbour to sign off on the freehold transfer. It dragged on for ages.

In the end, he was lucky the final buyer stuck with it, but the price was lower, and the whole thing left a bad taste. A lesson learned. Share of freehold can be a real nightmare if the other owners aren’t cooperative. You’ve got to be 100 per cent sure everyone’s reasonable, otherwise it’s just not worth the hassle.

[nico_13]

There is no other way than to move out. I am in such a situation myself where our neighbours are complete assholes. They breached the Covenants and when we pointed it they said to take them to court if we want. 

Unfortunately, they have made our life miserable and we have to move out. 

 

What helped in our situation is having a calm conversation face to face. It only happened after they tasted their own medicine(i know it's mean but nothing else helps).

 

I know it's unfair but better move out and prioritise your mental health. 

[FellbriggSam]

If you’re into nature or just love trees, this lovely program is worth catching up on
https://www.channel5.com/show/the-secret-life-of-trees
It’s one of those quietly fascinating watches that leave you thinking about the world a bit differently.

I had no idea that trees are connected underground by fungal networks. They use them to share nutrients, water, and even to send signals to each other. They can recognise their kind and give more support to their “relatives” than to other trees nearby. They can also remember things like droughts or pest attacks and change how they respond in the future.

No wonder so many cultures and spiritual traditions view trees as sacred. In some belief systems, cutting one down is thought to carry serious karmic consequences. When you learn about how they live, communicate, and support one another, it makes sense. The natural world is far more aware and interconnected than we tend to realise.

[malumbu]

David Attenborough has also done programmes on this amazing relationship.  This is from 2010 but I am sure that there were more recent programmes on the Beeb https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p006ry61

Mummy trees are amazing.