If you notice your neighbour’s hedge branches sticking out on your property, it can cause annoyances such as dead leaves accumulating in your home or unwanted shadows. If your neighbor refuses to do something about it or fails to keep his promises to fix the problem, you may be in for a difficult situation.
Unfortunately, you cannot cut your neighbour’s branches on your own initiative under Article 673 of the Civil Code. According to this article, it is up to your neighbor to cut the branches that protrude on your property.
However, it is important to note that the article also stipulates that “the person on whose property the branches of the trees, shrubs and shrubs of the neighbor are advancing may compel the latter to cut them”. Consequently, you can oblige your neighbor to cut the branches that encroach on your property, whether or not they cause an abnormal neighborhood disturbance. Your neighbor can do it himself or hire a professional out of his own pocket.
If it’s roots, brambles or twigs sticking out on your property, the law is different. In this case, you have the right to cut these parts up to the property line, without having to obtain the prior agreement of your neighbour.
My neighbor refuses to trim the adjoining hedge: what should I do?
If your neighbor refuses to trim the dividing hedge, there are several options to consider. First of all, it is important to have a direct discussion with your neighbor to understand the reason for his refusal (delay, physical incapacity, refusal, etc.).
If the problem persists, you can follow these steps:
- Send a registered letter with acknowledgment of receipt and give your neighbor a month to respond.
- If there is no response, have a bailiff’s report drawn up with photos to prove the lack of maintenance of the hedge.
- Send a summons by bailiff to ask your neighbor to participate in the maintenance costs or to abandon joint ownership.
If your neighbor does not respond or refuses, you can go to the district court to settle the dispute.
In summary, it is important to follow the legal steps and be patient while seeking to resolve the conflict amicably before resorting to more drastic measures.
I am a tenant: who should maintain the hedge?
As part of a rental, it is the responsibility of the tenant to take care of the maintenance of the garden, including the size, pruning and weeding of trees and shrubs, as well as the routine maintenance of the garden, as specified in decree no. 87-712 of August 26, 1987.
If the hedge is not properly maintained at the time the tenant vacates the premises, the landlord may withhold part or all of the tenant’s security deposit to cover gardening costs.
However, this deduction must be justified by a comparison of the entry and exit inventory. It is therefore important for tenants of a house with a garden to ensure that the description of the garden in the entry inventory is accurate, in particular with regard to anomalies such as a hedge exceeding the height legal, in order to protect against any unfavorable comparison at the exit.
If the hedge encroaches on the public domain
If you are close to public land or a public road, the mayor is empowered to impose the pruning of tree branches that protrude onto the public road, in accordance with article L 2212-2-1° of the General code of local and regional authorities. The mayor must then give formal notice to the owner of the branches in question to cut them. If the owner does nothing, the mayor has the power to have the trees pruned himself at the owner’s expense.
In addition, if tree branches overhang private property, the municipality is also required to prune its trees, according to a judgment of the Third Civil Chamber of the Court of Cassation dated October 2, 2013.
The dates on which hedge trimming is prohibited are regulated in France. According to the law, it is forbidden to trim hedges and fell trees that are inside or along agricultural plots between March 15 (for individuals) or April 1 (for farmers) and July 31. This regulation was put in place by the European Parliament with the aim of protecting the breeding and nesting period of birds.
