When trees become hazardous, they can pose a significant risk to people and property. That’s where our expertise comes in.
As a trusted tree service company with years of experience, we are well-equipped to identify and deal with dangerous trees in a safe and efficient manner.
As expert Newcastle tree surgeons, we understand that identifying dangerous trees is not always straightforward. Some trees may appear healthy and stable on the surface, but a closer inspection may reveal hidden dangers. Our team of experts is trained to identify signs of tree decay, disease, and structural damage that could make a tree hazardous. We use state-of-the-art equipment and techniques to assess the health and stability of trees and determine the best course of action.
Dealing with dangerous trees requires skill, knowledge, and experience. Our team is equipped to handle even the most challenging tree removals, using the latest techniques and equipment to ensure the safety of people and property. We take great care to minimise any impact on the surrounding ecosystem and wildlife, and we always adhere to relevant laws and regulations.
- Identifying dangerous trees requires expertise and specialised equipment to assess the health and stability of trees.
- Dealing with dangerous trees requires skill, knowledge, and experience to ensure the safety of people and property.
- A trustworthy tree service company will take great care to minimise the impact on the surrounding ecosystem and wildlife, and always adhere to relevant laws and regulations.
How to Tell If a Tree Is Actually Dangerous
Most trees that look alarming are fine, and some that look fine are not. From the ground, the signs that genuinely warrant attention are:
- Dead wood in the crown — bare limbs in summer, bark falling away, woodpecker activity
- Cracks and cavities in the trunk or where big limbs join — especially after high winds
- Fungal brackets at the base or on the stem — often the visible sign of decay inside
- A lean that’s changed — trees grow leaning all the time; a lean that’s recently increased, with lifting soil or roots on the opposite side, is different
- Hung-up or hanging branches — snapped limbs caught in the crown, waiting for the next gust
Equally, ivy cover, a bit of deadwood on a mature oak, or surface roots are usually not emergencies — and an honest assessor will tell you so rather than quote for a felling you don’t need.
Told Your Tree Is “Rotting and Needs to Come Down Today”? Get a Second Opinion
It’s a story we hear too often: someone’s partway through a small pruning job when the contractor calls the homeowner outside — the tree is rotting, it’s dying, but they can take it down right now for a price. Sometimes that diagnosis is genuine. Often it isn’t, and the pressure to decide on the spot is the tell. Our assessments are free and written down: what we found, what it means, and what actually needs doing — which is frequently nothing more than removing deadwood or reducing a limb. If we say a tree needs to come down, you’ll have the reasons in writing, and you’re welcome to check them with anyone.
Dangerous Trees and the Law: Where You Stand
As the owner, you’re responsible for damage or injury your tree causes if you knew — or should reasonably have known — it was hazardous. That’s why a written assessment matters: it documents that you acted responsibly. Other situations we’re asked about constantly: a neighbour’s dangerous tree (you can cut overhanging branches back to your boundary under common law; beyond that, notify them in writing of the danger — it strengthens any later claim), council-owned trees (report via Newcastle City Council’s street-tree service; we can supply a supporting assessment), and protected trees — even a TPO tree can be made safe, using the 5-working-day dangerous-tree notice instead of the usual consent process, or immediately where the risk is urgent. Full detail in our Newcastle tree law guide.
Make-Safe or Full Removal?
Dangerous doesn’t automatically mean the whole tree goes. Where the defect is a single failed limb, we remove the hazard and leave a sound tree behind. Where the stem itself is compromised, we dismantle in sections — rigging every cut so nothing free-falls, exactly the situation sectional felling exists for. A tree that’s already split or hanging is precisely when you don’t want an improvised approach: the wood is under loads you can’t see, and releasing them in the wrong order is how people get hurt. If something is hanging over a path, car or roof right now, skip the queue — that’s what our 24-hour emergency tree service is for.
What Hazard Work Costs
The assessment is free. Making a tree safe ranges from modest (removing a hanging limb) to the same bands as any large removal — £250–£400 for small trees through £1,400–£2,000+ for large ones, with complexity and access setting the price more than size alone. If the work stems from storm damage, we provide the written documentation and photographs your home insurer will ask for; many hazard jobs end up substantially covered. Our cost guide explains what moves prices within those ranges.
How It Works
- Send photos now — from a safe distance. We triage the same day and tell you honestly how urgent it is.
- Assessment — free, on site, findings in writing.
- Legal check — TPO/conservation status confirmed; the 5-day notice filed if the tree is protected.
- The work — make-safe or removal, rigged and controlled, with insurer documentation where relevant.
- Aftermath — waste cleared, site tidied, and advice on the tree’s future if any of it remains.
Frequently Asked Questions
My neighbour’s tree looks dangerous — what can I actually do?
Cut overhanging branches back to your boundary (they remain the neighbour’s property), and notify them of the danger in writing — that record matters if the tree later causes damage. We can provide a written assessment to accompany your letter, which usually gets things moving.
Who deals with a dangerous council-owned tree?
Report it to Newcastle City Council’s tree team. If it’s threatening your property and you need evidence, we can inspect and document it independently.
Is my leaning tree dangerous?
A long-standing lean the tree grew with is usually fine. A lean that’s recently increased — especially with cracked or lifting soil on the windward side — needs looking at promptly. Send us a photo and we’ll triage it the same day, free.
Will my home insurance cover dangerous tree work?
Storm damage to your property from trees is commonly covered, and insurers often fund removal of the hazard. Pre-existing neglect usually isn’t. We provide the written assessment and photos insurers ask for either way.
The tree has a TPO — can it still be made safe?
Yes. Genuinely dangerous trees can be worked on via a 5-working-day notice to the council instead of full consent — and immediately where there’s urgent risk, with evidence kept. We handle that paperwork routinely.
A branch snapped in the storm and is hanging in the crown — how urgent is that?
Treat it as urgent: hung branches come down without warning, usually in the next blow. Keep people from underneath it and call us — this is standard emergency call-out territory.
How quickly can you make a dangerous tree safe?
Genuine emergencies: same day, via the emergency line. Non-urgent hazards: typically assessed within a few days and scheduled promptly, with honest advice on how long it can safely wait.
Do you charge for looking at a tree I’m worried about?
No — assessments and quotes are free and in writing, and quite often the honest answer is that your tree is healthier than you feared.
Worried About a Tree? Ask Us Today
Send a photo through the contact form or call 0191 691 1378 — we’ll tell you honestly whether it’s urgent, routine, or nothing to worry about. Free written assessments across Newcastle, Gosforth, Jesmond, Heaton and all of Tyneside.