How Much??

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  The answer to this is as broad as it is long, however for a qualified, reputable tree surgeon you could expect to pay between £400 - £800 a day + vat (if applicable). This is for a 2-man team with van and chipper. Usually work is quoted per job, but can be priced on a daily rate depending on the client’s needs. This depends on a wide range of varying factors which we will explain below. It is important to remember aerial works require an aerial rescuer as well as a climber, as such, this requires a minimum of 2 qualified workers present when climbing. 

When factoring a day, it is important to remember that after the job is complete, we have to tip our waste at our storage facility (separating types of waste where necessary) and then return to the yard to unload our equipment and maintain our equipment. You likely wouldn't appreciate us rocking up to site and, before we started, taking half an hour to sharpen and clean out our chainsaws on your driveway, this is all done after the job is finished, to ensure when we turn up, we crack on and work efficiently. We must also check all of our climbing gear, as well as undergo many other checks and perform maintenance tasks. 

  Being qualified means, we are properly trained to do what we do. This means we hold certificates to prove we are trained to be using the equipment we do. Most of us also hold diplomas in arboriculture, which means we don’t just know how to do the work, but what is best for your tree and why/how it should be pruned too, meaning we can take better care of your trees. 

We are also insured, up to £5 million, which means should the worst happen, both us and you are covered. 

 Waste removal - We hold a waste carriers’ licence and we can dispose of any quantity of waste. We recycle our waste wherever we can, our woodchip and wood are recycled or repurposed where possible reducing our carbon footprint and following the best practice that we can. This does incur a cost however for storage, transport and time to load & unload etc. Depending on the job and quantity of waste we may turn up with 1,2 or 3 vehicles to remove the waste from the job. This saves us time running around during the day, meaning we can do more work on site, but increases our running costs for the day. 

Site location – Sometimes a garden or site can have bad access, back onto other gardens, or have various objects in which we have to avoid, like flower beds, greenhouse, sheds etc. We always work to find the most efficient way to complete a job, it’s never impossible, but adds time to the job and therefore cost. 

Obstructions - You may not have anything in your garden but often your neighbour does, and your tree overhangs their prized fish pond or green house. When having your trees trimmed it is important to remember we are not dropping pillows. The last thing you want is a disgruntled neighbour banging on the door because they have had a log come through their new garden gym and interrupted their Pilates class! Wood is heavy and branches can cause damage if not careful. We factor into the job protecting/guarding delicate plants or garden features where required and, combined with years of experience, take care to avoid breaking your beloved garden. This means sometimes it takes longer, but ensures when we leave, your garden, and your neighbours', are in the same condition as when we arrived. We also take special care when working in neighbours’ gardens to ensure they are happy and everything is tidy, so next time you want to prune your tree, they say yes, not “They aren’t coming in our garden again”. We often find neighbours are wary to give access due to a bad experience where contractors left a mess or damaged property. 

Time of year – Time of year can play a part in the cost of a job, for example, if it’s in the middle of winter and your garden is saturated, 2, 3 or 4 eager workers tramping back and forth for a day will leave it nothing short of a rugby pitch when finished… Likewise, when access for machinery is required, this can damage the ground too. However, we offer an option at a small additional cost, to provide mats for our machinery and workers to go over, this stops damage and keeps your garden looking good even in winter. 

Wood processing – Sometimes clients want to keep the wood for their own use and they ask for the wood to be cut into logs for them to process. This is something we are happy to do, but this takes considerably more time to process the wood into logs and creates a lot of mess which has to be cleared up. This can sometimes add a lot of time to the job, increasing the cost.

You get what you pay for – Quotes for tree work can vary substantially, everyone has their individual operating costs which vary. However, if a contractor is substantially cheaper, this is usually because corners are being cut either with training, insurance, or quality of work. In most cases, “cheap work is not skilled and skilled work is not cheap”. Our customer research indicates a high majority of customers care about safety and quality of work. If it seems too good to be true, it probably is. 

Planning consent – If the tree has a Tree Preservation order (TPO) or is within a conservation area an application of consent will need to be submitted to the local authority. This is a process that is usually best done by the contractor (although can be done by the client). It takes roughly 45 minutes per application and requires a map, pictures and a variety of information about the works. See more information about TPOs and conservation areas by clicking the button below. A small fee will be shown on the quote for this in addition to the cost of the job.  

When a team comes to you, they could have any of the following, 

· Van & Chipper 

· Stump grinder 

· Ground chainsaws (from small up to large)

· Aerial chainsaws

· Climbing kits x 2 

· Clean up gear 

· Ladder 

· Tripod steps 

· Rigging kit for lowering branches

· Hedge trimmers 

· Leaf blower

· Felling equipment 

· Ground mats 

· In addition, each person is wearing, on average, over £600 worth of PPE (personal protective equipment)

All of this equipment is maintained regularly and updated to ensure we have reliable, good quality equipment. Nothing is cheap these days, but specialised equipment costs even more. Tree work is very hard on equipment and this maintenance is essential to ensure we turn up and are reliable day after day, providing you with a consistent, efficient service. This is a very costly factor to any reputable tree surgeon; it is a factor that contributes to our day rate/quote. 

For further information, please contact us.