What if its an old tree already causing problems?
You have the right to cut back any trespassing roots or branches. The difficulty is that cutting the roots may render the tree unsafe. That does not prevent you exercising your rights but it would certainly be prudent to tell your neighbour what you’re doing so as to avoid any possible claims, particularly from third parties, if the tree were to fall. In principle, you ought to be able to charge your neighbour for the cost of a contractor to do the work. If the roots have damaged your property, they would be certainly liable for the cost of putting matters right. It’s my neighbour’s hedge that’s the nuisance. Unless a right to light is infringed, which is difficult and expensive to prove as I said, you cannot bring an action however high the hedge. But the problem caused by leylandii has prompted the Anti-social Behaviour Act 2003, which provides a specific procedure to deal with “high hedges”, defined as “so much of a barrier to light or access as (a) is formed wholly or predominantly
