Frequently Asked Questions

No, as long as you have clearly explained your tree work requirements over the phone, you don’t always need to be on site when we come and do the inspection.

If need be, Damian can give you a call when he is on-site to discuss and advise you on what council permits are required and the best treatment plan for your trees over the phone. He will leave a copy of the quote in your letter box or simply email it across to you.

Once you have approved the quote, Damian will then schedule in a time for the Intensive Tree Care Service team to carry out the work for you.

You don’t need to be on-site when the work is being carried out either but you can be there of course if you want to.

As a general rule, if the tree is less than 5m in height, less than 10m in canopy diameter, and less than 1.5m in trunk circumference at 1m above ground, you do not require a Council permit to remove/prune a tree unless it is growing on the site of a heritage item.

Each Council however, has its own ‘Tree & Vegetation Management Policy’ so it’s important to check with your local Council for the rules pertaining to your particular property beforehand.

If your tree is protected under your local Council’s ‘Tree & Vegetation Management Policy’ an application form would usually need to be completed and submitted to Council for assessment and approval before any work is to be carried out. Click on the council link that is relevant to your suburb for detailed tree permit information:

Northern Beaches Council        www.northernbeaches.nsw.gov.au/environment/trees

Mosman Council                          www.mosman.nsw.gov.au/environment/Tree-management

Willoughby City Council            www.willoughby.nsw.gov.au/Residents/Trees

Ku-Ring-Gai Council                   www.kmc.nsw.gov.au/Plans_regulation/Environment/Trees

North Sydney Council                www.northsydney.nsw.gov.au/Environment_Waste/Trees

Hornsby Shire Council               www.hornsby.nsw.gov.au/environment/flora-and-fauna/tree-management

Lane Cove Council                      www.lanecove.nsw.gov.au/Environment/TreeManagement/Pages/default.aspx

Hunters Hill Council                   www.huntershill.nsw.gov.au/property/my-property/trees/

City of Ryde Council                   www.ryde.nsw.gov.au/Environment-and-Waste/Trees

City of Sydney Council               www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/live/trees

Woollahra Council                      www.woollahra.nsw.gov.au/services/trees

Inner West Council                    www.innerwest.nsw.gov.au/live/information-for-residents/trees

Waverley Council                       www.waverley.nsw.gov.au/residents/trees_and_gardens

Randwick Council                      www.randwick.nsw.gov.au/environment-and-sustainability/trees

All local councils have what’s called a ‘Tree Preservation Order (TPO)’, which outlines rules for tree maintenance and removal. This allows you to check whether your tree can be removed without council approval.

As a general rule of thumb, you can remove a tree in Sydney without council approval when:

1. The tree is dead
2. The tree is dying
3. The tree is within 3 meters of a house or building
4. The tree is on your local council’s exemption list
5. The tree is in a fire zone

Regulations however are council specific so, you will need to consult your local council TPO to make sure. Click on the council link that is relevant to your suburb for detailed tree permit information:

Northern Beaches Council        www.northernbeaches.nsw.gov.au/environment/trees

Mosman Council                          www.mosman.nsw.gov.au/environment/Tree-management

Willoughby City Council             www.willoughby.nsw.gov.au/Residents/Trees

Ku-Ring-Gai Council                   www.kmc.nsw.gov.au/Plans_regulation/Environment/Trees

North Sydney Council                www.northsydney.nsw.gov.au/Environment_Waste/Trees

Hornsby Shire Council               www.hornsby.nsw.gov.au/environment/flora-and-fauna/tree-management

Lane Cove Council                     www.lanecove.nsw.gov.au/Environment/TreeManagement/Pages/default.aspx

Hunters Hill Council                   www.huntershill.nsw.gov.au/property/my-property/trees/

City of Ryde Council                  www.ryde.nsw.gov.au/Environment-and-Waste/Trees

City of Sydney Council               www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/live/trees

Woollahra Municipal Council     www.woollahra.nsw.gov.au/services/trees

Inner West Council                    www.innerwest.nsw.gov.au/live/information-for-residents/trees

Waverley Council                      www.waverley.nsw.gov.au/residents/trees_and_gardens

Randwick Council                      www.randwick.nsw.gov.au/environment-and-sustainability/trees

The easiest way is to contact your local council. Your local council can do a property search to see if permission has been granted under a tree permit or development application.

Each council has its own rules and regulations however generally speaking, property owners are permitted to prune or remove trees without a council permit if the tree is:

• Under 5 meters in height
• On the Exempt Tree Species List for that council
• In an area in which the Council has authorised their removal as part of a hazard reduction program, where that removal is necessary in order to manage risk
• Required to be removed under other legislation (including the NSW Rural Fires Act 1997 and the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979)

If the tree is not protected by your local Council’s ‘Tree & Vegetation Management Policy’, you can usually prune branches overhanging the common boundary line without the consent of the tree owner, within the recommended pruning practices of the Australian Standards For Pruning of Amenity Trees (AS 4373).

A qualified Arborist such as ‘Intensive Tree Care Service’ should be engaged to undertake the pruning.

If your neighbours overhanging tree is protected by your local Council’s Tree & Vegetation Management Policy however, you may apply to your local council to prune the overhanging branches.

All pruning, if approved by Council, must be undertaken to Australian Standards (AS4373-2007).

If access is required into the adjoining property to undertake the work correctly the property owner must provide the applicant with approval to access the property for works to be carried out. If the pruning does not require access to the tree owner’s property the owner of the tree is not required to give their approval for works to be carried out. In such cases, if a Council consent is granted for the works, the consent does not give authorisation to the applicant, or engaged contractor, to enter the tree owner’s property.

In some circumstances, a Council may insist that the applicant consult with, or inform, the tree owner of the intention to prune their tree prior to Council consent being granted.

If a person wishes to prune a tree contained entirely within a property which they do not own, they will usually be required to have that property owners written consent for works to be carried out before it can be assessed by their local Council.

It’s important to note that local Councils have no authority to act in disputes between neighbours. If your neighbour does not agree to remove or prune a tree, you can contact the Community Justice Centre for mediation assistance. If the tree is damaging your property and the above methods have not worked you will need to seek your own legal advice. Action can be taken under the Trees (Disputes Between Neighbours) Act.

Yes, if the tree is suitable to be used as firewood and you request it, we can cut some into manageable pieces for you and leave you a pile onsite for firewood.

Mulch is also available if requested, we will unload in an accessible spot onsite.

It is important to note the difference in the skill level between a practicing/working arborist who prunes/removes trees and a consulting arborist who specialises in tree reports; diagnosing the health and structure of a tree and tree protection measures. When choosing a working arborist to undertake tree works please be aware of the following minimum requirements.

All staff should have the minimum qualification of Certificate 2 Horticulture (Arboriculture) and all climbing works undertaken or supervised by a person with a Certificate 3 Horticulture (Arboriculture). This is a requirement of the Australian Standard AS 4373 – Pruning of Amenity Trees.

The contractor must have a certificate of currency for Worker’s Compensation Insurance, an Australian Business Number and preferably include these details on any written quote.

Current Public Liability Insurance.

When choosing a consulting arborist for specialist arborist reports or when required by Council, the arborist must have a minimum qualification of Level 5 in Horticulture (Arboriculture).

All vegetation on Public Land is protected under the Local Government Act and part 3 of SEPP (Vegetation in Non-Rural Areas) 2017. Council permission is required to undertake any work on Public Land. Any person or organisation can apply to undertake work on Council trees and the application will be assessed on a case by case basic by the related council.

Intensive Tree Care Service holds Public liability insurance worth $20million which covers your property, neighbouring properties and injury to persons in case of damage. We also have Workers Compensation Insurance for our employees and Professional Indemnity insurance.

When choosing a tree company, its highly important they hold the appropriate insurances when completing your jobs as an uninsured company or contractor will not be covered for any damage to your property or injury to persons.

Our quotes are valid for 30 days.

Our invoices are emailed to you upon completion of the job.

Payment can be made via the options shown on the invoice, including payments by cheque.