Overgrown trees
Landowners are responsible for making sure that any vegetation, on their land, does not overgrow and cause an obstruction on the highway.
Vegetation and trees that might do this are usually on private land and, if this is the case, we will write to the landowner and ask that they take action.
When the tree is the responsibility of Devon County Council we will carry out the work.
If you are concerned that a tree has grown into a footpath, over a road, or is blocking a street light we can assess the location.
If you are reporting an emergency that is very likely to present an imminent threat to life or serious injury or serious damage to property please instead call us on 0345 155 1004.
Hazardous trees
A tree is a hazard when all, or a section, could fall and potentially injure people or damage property.
The following can help to identify a hazardous tree:
- Splits or cracks in the trunk or branches.
- Branches that are broken or hanging.
- Sections of bark damaged or stripped to show the wood beneath (some trees, such as plane or eucalyptus, naturally shed their bark).
- Soil movement around the base of the tree in strong winds.
- Sections showing signs of rotting.
- Growth of fungi on the bark, wood or around the base of the tree.
- Foliage dying back or going brown for no apparent reason on evergreen trees, or out of season for deciduous trees.
Trees showing signs of dieback
Please note and consider the following before making a report of hazardous tree.
We have an exceptionally high workload in Tree Safety Management, with the spread of ash dieback contributing to this. This is particularly the case during the summer, where dying trees are more obvious, which therefore results in a marked increase in customer reports.
Whilst it is important that imminent threats to safety are reported to us by the public, you should be reassured that we have a rigorous inspection regime in place that will identify the most obvious tree defects. This will include dead and dying trees, and therefore those with ash dieback.
Our main roads (maintenance category 3-5) receive an expert tree inspection over the summer months, and our other roads will receive a highway safety inspection during the summer months, where ash dieback and other dying or dead trees will be identified and acted upon accordingly.
Therefore, unless the tree defect you are wishing to report represents a serious imminent threat requiring immediate treatment, you should not need to report it to us, as it should be identified during one of our inspections.
You can check the maintenance category of a road here, as well as see when it was last inspected.
Please help us deliver the best service we can with regards to tree safety management by only reporting the most imminently dangerous trees to us, and being reassured that lower-priority diseased trees, including those with signs of ash dieback, will be identified during our summer inspections and appropriate action taken.
If you are reporting an emergency that is very likely to present an imminent threat to life or serious injury or serious damage to property please instead call us on 0345 155 1004.
Fallen trees and branches
If a branch or tree has fallen across a road or footway we can arrange for it to be cleared.
If you are reporting an emergency that is very likely to present an imminent threat to life or serious injury or serious damage to property please instead call us on 0345 155 1004.