Tree removals and removal requests for insurance or building damage reasons
Dear North West Leicestershire District Council,
Trees that are near buildings are often threatened by requests for removal. These requests normally come from homeowners or property owners or their insurance companies after trees are alleged to be causing damage. In many cases these trees pre-date the buildings that are being affected.
I would like to understand more about how this issue affects your local authority and the trees you are responsible for (i.e, you are responsible for maintaining, or are on your land, owned by you, etc).
In particular, I would like to know, over the past 10 years:
- The locations of trees removed by your authority due to property or infrastructure damage, ideally accompanied by their species and the date of removal where possible (locations via GIS data, What3Words, OS coordinates, or addresses as you find easiest)
- How many of/which of these trees were removed due to claims or requests from insurance companies
- How much the council paid to remove each tree (if this can be attributed per removal, or how much the council spent on tree removal each financial year if not)
- How much the council paid out in insurance claims for tree damage to properties (individual claim values preferred, but an aggregate value may be acceptable if the council considers the individual values to be exempt from disclosure)
- The number of trees where removal has been requested, but was either refused, an alternative solution found, or the situation is still ongoing; any breakdown that can be provided (similar to above, e.g, species and location) would be appreciated
Please follow the following principles when considering this request:
- Data at an individual tree level is preferred, but where you consider this can't be disclosed due to commercial or legal agreements (e.g, insurance claims, contractor works) then aggregate data either annually or (worst case) over the whole period may be acceptable
- Some data is better than no data; for example, if data is only available for the last 5 years then that is better than refusing the request
Given this is a request about trees, this request falls under the Environmental Information Regulations 2004 (EIR) rather than FOI. This carries stricter time limits for responses and fewer exemptions to disclosure. Please treat this as an EIR request.
Yours faithfully,
Lawrence Weetman
Dear Lawrence Weetman,
FREEDOM OF INFORMATION REQUEST IG001989
I write further to your email dated 11/07/2024.
Your request has been dealt with under the terms of the Freedom of
Information Act 2000 (FOIA), explained on our [1]freedom of information
page.
Your request:
Trees that are near buildings are often threatened by requests for
removal. These requests normally come from homeowners or property owners
or their insurance companies after trees are alleged to be causing damage.
In many cases these trees pre-date the buildings that are being affected.
I would like to understand more about how this issue affects your local
authority and the trees you are responsible for (i.e, you are responsible
for maintaining, or are on your land, owned by you, etc).
In particular, I would like to know, over the past 10 years:
- The locations of trees removed by your authority due to property or
infrastructure damage, ideally accompanied by their species and the date
of removal where possible (locations via GIS data, What3Words, OS
coordinates, or addresses as you find easiest)
- How many of/which of these trees were removed due to claims or requests
from insurance companies
- How much the council paid to remove each tree (if this can be attributed
per removal, or how much the council spent on tree removal each financial
year if not)
- How much the council paid out in insurance claims for tree damage to
properties (individual claim values preferred, but an aggregate value may
be acceptable if the council considers the individual values to be exempt
from disclosure)
- The number of trees where removal has been requested, but was either
refused, an alternative solution found, or the situation is still ongoing;
any breakdown that can be provided (similar to above, e.g, species and
location) would be appreciated
Please follow the following principles when considering this request:
- Data at an individual tree level is preferred, but where you consider
this can't be disclosed due to commercial or legal agreements (e.g,
insurance claims, contractor works) then aggregate data either annually or
(worst case) over the whole period may be acceptable
- Some data is better than no data; for example, if data is only available
for the last 5 years then that is better than refusing the request
Given this is a request about trees, this request falls under the
Environmental Information Regulations 2004 (EIR) rather than FOI. This
carries stricter time limits for responses and fewer exemptions to
disclosure. Please treat this as an EIR request.
Our response:
I am writing to advise that the information you have requested is not held
by North West Leicestershire District Council.
We do not hold any information in regards to the number of trees planted
or felled within the area.
The supply of information in response to a freedom of information request
does not confer the right to re-use the information. UK copyright law
allows information supplied for the purposes of private study and
non-commercial research to be used without permission. Information
supplied can also be re-used for the purposes of news reporting except for
in the case of photographs.
GOING FORWARD
If you are dissatisfied with the information supplied please feel free to
contact me on the number above for any queries in relation to this
response. Please note that in responding to further enquiries I can only
comment on the information contained within this correspondence and cannot
provide any further information that may pertain to an additional FOIA
request.
Please remember to quote the Authority’s eight digit reference number
given at the top of this email in any future communications.
If you remain dissatisfied following the conclusion of the above informal
review, you have the right to ask for an internal review. A request for a
review whether formal or informal should be submitted within two calendar
months of the date of receipt of the response to your original letter and
should be sent to [2][email address] or the address above.
Further details on our appeals and complaints procedure can be found on
our website [3]here.
If you remain dissatisfied following the conclusion of the internal
review, you have the right to apply directly to the Information
Commissioner for a decision. The Information Commissioner can be contacted
at [4][email address].
Yours sincerely
Information Governance Team
══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
NWLDC
Council Office
Whitwick Road
Coalville
Leicestershire
LE67 3FJ
01530 454545
[North West Leicestershire District Council request email]
[5]Cyber Essentials CompliantYou can report, request and pay for things
online at [6]www.nwleics.gov.uk
[7]ShawTrust Accessible
------- Email confidentiality notice -------
This e-mail and any files transmitted with it are confidential and
intended solely for the use of the individual or entity to whom they are
addressed. If you have received this e-mail in error please notify the
originator of the message. This footer also confirms that this e-mail
message has been scanned for the presence of computer viruses.
Please note: Incoming and outgoing e-mail messages are routinely monitored
for compliance with North West Leicestershire District Council's policy on
the use of electronic communications. Any personal data that you provide
will be processed in accordance with current data protection laws. It will
be used by North West Leicestershire District Council and our partners to
deliver and improve services and fulfil our legal duties. We will not
disclose any personal information to anyone else unless required or
allowed to do so by law. Read more about how we use personal data in our
Privacy Notice on our website:
[8]https://www.nwleics.gov.uk/pages/website...
[9]Achieve Forms Footer Banner
References
Visible links
1. http://www.nwleics.gov.uk/pages/how_to_m...
2. mailto:[email address]
3. http://www.nwleics.gov.uk/pages/freedom_...
4. mailto:[email address]
6. http://www.nwleics.gov.uk/
7. https://www.accessibility-services.co.uk...
8. https://www.nwleics.gov.uk/pages/website...
9. https://nwleics-self.achieveservice.com/
Dear Lawrence Weetman,
ENVIRONMENTAL INFORMATION REGULATIONS REQUEST IG001989
I write further to your email dated 11/07/2024.
Your request has been dealt with under the terms of the Environmental
Information Regulations 2004 (EIR), explained on our [1]website.
Your request:
Trees that are near buildings are often threatened by requests for
removal. These requests normally come from homeowners or property owners
or their insurance companies after trees are alleged to be causing damage.
In many cases these trees pre-date the buildings that are being affected.
I would like to understand more about how this issue affects your local
authority and the trees you are responsible for (i.e, you are responsible
for maintaining, or are on your land, owned by you, etc).
In particular, I would like to know, over the past 10 years:
- The locations of trees removed by your authority due to property or
infrastructure damage, ideally accompanied by their species and the date
of removal where possible (locations via GIS data, What3Words, OS
coordinates, or addresses as you find easiest)
- How many of/which of these trees were removed due to claims or requests
from insurance companies
- How much the council paid to remove each tree (if this can be attributed
per removal, or how much the council spent on tree removal each financial
year if not)
- How much the council paid out in insurance claims for tree damage to
properties (individual claim values preferred, but an aggregate value may
be acceptable if the council considers the individual values to be exempt
from disclosure)
- The number of trees where removal has been requested, but was either
refused, an alternative solution found, or the situation is still ongoing;
any breakdown that can be provided (similar to above, e.g, species and
location) would be appreciated
Please follow the following principles when considering this request:
- Data at an individual tree level is preferred, but where you consider
this can't be disclosed due to commercial or legal agreements (e.g,
insurance claims, contractor works) then aggregate data either annually or
(worst case) over the whole period may be acceptable
- Some data is better than no data; for example, if data is only available
for the last 5 years then that is better than refusing the request
Given this is a request about trees, this request falls under the
Environmental Information Regulations 2004 (EIR) rather than FOI. This
carries stricter time limits for responses and fewer exemptions to
disclosure. Please treat this as an EIR request.
Our response:
I can confirm that North West Leicestershire District Council does not
hold the information you have requested. Your request is, therefore,
subject to an exception under regulation 12(4) of the EIR. Regulation
12(4) (a) applies when the public authority does not hold information at
the time the request is received.
To apply this exception, we must consider the public interest with the
presumption of being in favour to disclose. In this case,
The supply of information in response to a freedom of information request
does not confer the right to re-use the information. UK copyright law
allows information supplied for the purposes of private study and
non-commercial research to be used without permission. Information
supplied can also be re-used for the purposes of news reporting except for
in the case of photographs.
We do not hold any information in regards to the number of trees planted
or felled within the area.
GOING FORWARD
If you are dissatisfied with the information supplied please feel free to
contact me on the number above for any queries in relation to this
response. Please note that in responding to further enquiries I can only
comment on the information contained within this correspondence and cannot
provide any further information that may pertain to an additional EIR
request.
If you remain dissatisfied following the conclusion of the above informal
review, you have the right to ask for an internal review. A request for a
review whether formal or informal should be submitted within two calendar
months of the date of receipt of the response to your original letter and
should be sent to [2][email address] or the address above.
Please remember to quote the Authority’s eight digit reference number
given at the top of this email in any future communications.
Further details on our appeals and complaints procedure can be found on
our website [3]here.
If you remain dissatisfied following the conclusion of the internal
review, you have the right to apply directly to the Information
Commissioner for a decision. The Information Commissioner can be contacted
at [4][email address].
Yours sincerely
Information Governance Team
══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
NWLDC
Council Office
Whitwick Road
Coalville
Leicestershire
LE67 3FJ
01530 454545
[North West Leicestershire District Council request email]
[5]Cyber Essentials CompliantYou can report, request and pay for things
online at [6]www.nwleics.gov.uk
[7]ShawTrust Accessible
------- Email confidentiality notice -------
This e-mail and any files transmitted with it are confidential and
intended solely for the use of the individual or entity to whom they are
addressed. If you have received this e-mail in error please notify the
originator of the message. This footer also confirms that this e-mail
message has been scanned for the presence of computer viruses.
Please note: Incoming and outgoing e-mail messages are routinely monitored
for compliance with North West Leicestershire District Council's policy on
the use of electronic communications. Any personal data that you provide
will be processed in accordance with current data protection laws. It will
be used by North West Leicestershire District Council and our partners to
deliver and improve services and fulfil our legal duties. We will not
disclose any personal information to anyone else unless required or
allowed to do so by law. Read more about how we use personal data in our
Privacy Notice on our website:
[8]https://www.nwleics.gov.uk/pages/website...
[9]Achieve Forms Footer Banner
References
Visible links
1. https://www.nwleics.gov.uk/pages/environ...
2. mailto:[email address]
3. https://www.nwleics.gov.uk/pages/freedom...
4. mailto:[email address]
6. http://www.nwleics.gov.uk/
7. https://www.accessibility-services.co.uk...
8. https://www.nwleics.gov.uk/pages/website...
9. https://nwleics-self.achieveservice.com/
Dear North West Leicestershire District Council,
Please can I request an internal review?
I just want to clarify that I am not asking generally about the number of trees planted/felled "in the area", but am looking at trees that fall under the responsibility of the council.
In the course of this review, could you confirm that at least the following teams were asked for the information I requested?
1. Whichever team is responsible for green spaces, parks, etc.
2. Whichever team is responsible for the environment and streets.
3. Whichever team is responsible for receiving claims from insurance companies or house holders.
Yours faithfully,
Lawrence Weetman
Dear Lawrence Weetman,
FREEDOM OF INFORMATION REQUEST IG001989
I write further to your email dated 11/07/2024 and your follow up email on
the same day requesting an internal review.
Your request has been dealt with under the terms of the Freedom of
Information Act 2000 (FOIA), explained on our [1]freedom of information
page.
Apologies that we initially misunderstood your request. The Parks
department have now confirmed that they have not removed any trees due to
damage to property or infrastructure within the past 10 years. We are
awaiting a response from our Finance department and our Environment
Protection department, which they should hopefully provide shortly.
This has not been treated as an internal review as yet. You do of course
have the right to request one if still dissatisfied with our response once
we have provided one to your request.
GOING FORWARD
If you are dissatisfied with the information supplied please feel free to
contact me on the number above for any queries in relation to this
response. Please note that in responding to further enquiries I can only
comment on the information contained within this correspondence and cannot
provide any further information that may pertain to an additional FOIA
request.
If you remain dissatisfied following the conclusion of the above informal
review, you have the right to ask for an internal review. A request for a
review whether formal or informal should be submitted within two calendar
months of the date of receipt of the response to your original letter and
should be sent to [2][email address] or the address above.
Please remember to quote the Authority’s eight digit reference number
given at the top of this email in any future communications.
Further details on our appeals and complaints procedure can be found on
our website [3]here.
If you remain dissatisfied following the conclusion of the internal
review, you have the right to apply directly to the Information
Commissioner for a decision. The Information Commissioner can be contacted
at [4][email address].
Yours sincerely
Information Governance Team
══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
NWLDC
Council Office
Whitwick Road
Coalville
Leicestershire
LE67 3FJ
01530 454545
[North West Leicestershire District Council request email]
[5]Cyber Essentials CompliantYou can report, request and pay for things
online at [6]www.nwleics.gov.uk
[7]ShawTrust Accessible
------- Email confidentiality notice -------
This e-mail and any files transmitted with it are confidential and
intended solely for the use of the individual or entity to whom they are
addressed. If you have received this e-mail in error please notify the
originator of the message. This footer also confirms that this e-mail
message has been scanned for the presence of computer viruses.
Please note: Incoming and outgoing e-mail messages are routinely monitored
for compliance with North West Leicestershire District Council's policy on
the use of electronic communications. Any personal data that you provide
will be processed in accordance with current data protection laws. It will
be used by North West Leicestershire District Council and our partners to
deliver and improve services and fulfil our legal duties. We will not
disclose any personal information to anyone else unless required or
allowed to do so by law. Read more about how we use personal data in our
Privacy Notice on our website:
[8]https://www.nwleics.gov.uk/pages/website...
[9]Achieve Forms Footer Banner
References
Visible links
1. http://www.nwleics.gov.uk/pages/how_to_m...
2. mailto:[email address]
3. http://www.nwleics.gov.uk/pages/freedom_...
4. mailto:[email address]
6. http://www.nwleics.gov.uk/
7. https://www.accessibility-services.co.uk...
8. https://www.nwleics.gov.uk/pages/website...
9. https://nwleics-self.achieveservice.com/
Dear North West Leicestershire District Council,
Thanks for looking at this. Perfectly happy to proceed on that basis.
Thanks,
Lawrence Weetman
Dear Lawrence Weetman,
ENVIRONMENTAL INFORMATION REGULATIONS REQUEST IG001989
I write further to your email dated 11/07/2024.
Your request has been dealt with under the terms of the Environmental
Information Regulations 2004 (EIR), explained on our [1]website.
Your request:
Trees that are near buildings are often threatened by requests for
removal. These requests normally come from homeowners or property owners
or their insurance companies after trees are alleged to be causing damage.
In many cases these trees pre-date the buildings that are being affected.
I would like to understand more about how this issue affects your local
authority and the trees you are responsible for (i.e, you are responsible
for maintaining, or are on your land, owned by you, etc).
In particular, I would like to know, over the past 10 years:
- The locations of trees removed by your authority due to property or
infrastructure damage, ideally accompanied by their species and the date
of removal where possible (locations via GIS data, What3Words, OS
coordinates, or addresses as you find easiest)
- How many of/which of these trees were removed due to claims or requests
from insurance companies
- How much the council paid to remove each tree (if this can be attributed
per removal, or how much the council spent on tree removal each financial
year if not)
- How much the council paid out in insurance claims for tree damage to
properties (individual claim values preferred, but an aggregate value may
be acceptable if the council considers the individual values to be exempt
from disclosure)
- The number of trees where removal has been requested, but was either
refused, an alternative solution found, or the situation is still ongoing;
any breakdown that can be provided (similar to above, e.g, species and
location) would be appreciated
Please follow the following principles when considering this request:
- Data at an individual tree level is preferred, but where you consider
this can't be disclosed due to commercial or legal agreements (e.g,
insurance claims, contractor works) then aggregate data either annually or
(worst case) over the whole period may be acceptable
- Some data is better than no data; for example, if data is only available
for the last 5 years then that is better than refusing the request
Given this is a request about trees, this request falls under the
Environmental Information Regulations 2004 (EIR) rather than FOI. This
carries stricter time limits for responses and fewer exemptions to
disclosure. Please treat this as an EIR request.
Our response:
Both our Parks team and our Environmental Protection team have confirmed
that they have not removed any trees due to damage to property or
infrastructure within the past 10 years.
Our finance department has advised that there have been 8 insurance claims
made due to damage to property from trees in the past 10 years. None of
the claims have resulted in a pay out.
The supply of information in response to a freedom of information request
does not confer the right to re-use the information. UK copyright law
allows information supplied for the purposes of private study and
non-commercial research to be used without permission. Information
supplied can also be re-used for the purposes of news reporting except for
in the case of photographs.
GOING FORWARD
If you are dissatisfied with the information supplied please feel free to
contact me on the number above for any queries in relation to this
response. Please note that in responding to further enquiries I can only
comment on the information contained within this correspondence and cannot
provide any further information that may pertain to an additional EIR
request.
If you remain dissatisfied following the conclusion of the above informal
review, you have the right to ask for an internal review. A request for a
review whether formal or informal should be submitted within two calendar
months of the date of receipt of the response to your original letter and
should be sent to [2][email address] or the address above.
Please remember to quote the Authority’s eight digit reference number
given at the top of this email in any future communications.
Further details on our appeals and complaints procedure can be found on
our website [3]here.
If you remain dissatisfied following the conclusion of the internal
review, you have the right to apply directly to the Information
Commissioner for a decision. The Information Commissioner can be contacted
at [4][email address].
Yours sincerely
Information Governance Team
══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
NWLDC
Council Office
Whitwick Road
Coalville
Leicestershire
LE67 3FJ
01530 454545
[North West Leicestershire District Council request email]
[5]Cyber Essentials CompliantYou can report, request and pay for things
online at [6]www.nwleics.gov.uk
[7]ShawTrust Accessible
------- Email confidentiality notice -------
This e-mail and any files transmitted with it are confidential and
intended solely for the use of the individual or entity to whom they are
addressed. If you have received this e-mail in error please notify the
originator of the message. This footer also confirms that this e-mail
message has been scanned for the presence of computer viruses.
Please note: Incoming and outgoing e-mail messages are routinely monitored
for compliance with North West Leicestershire District Council's policy on
the use of electronic communications. Any personal data that you provide
will be processed in accordance with current data protection laws. It will
be used by North West Leicestershire District Council and our partners to
deliver and improve services and fulfil our legal duties. We will not
disclose any personal information to anyone else unless required or
allowed to do so by law. Read more about how we use personal data in our
Privacy Notice on our website:
[8]https://www.nwleics.gov.uk/pages/website...
[9]Achieve Forms Footer Banner
References
Visible links
1. https://www.nwleics.gov.uk/pages/environ...
2. mailto:[email address]
3. https://www.nwleics.gov.uk/pages/freedom...
4. mailto:[email address]
6. http://www.nwleics.gov.uk/
7. https://www.accessibility-services.co.uk...
8. https://www.nwleics.gov.uk/pages/website...
9. https://nwleics-self.achieveservice.com/
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