Western Power is responsible for managing all natural trees and vegetation on public land. We can turn off your power supply while your arboreal surgeon cuts down trees and shrubs, which are located near overhead power lines. We often receive requests from customers to temporarily shut off the power supply so that their tree surgeons can work safely. To understand the work involved, we will make a site visit, and from time to time we may first need to prune the trees on our power lines.
Electricity companies are responsible for pruning trees that are in contact with power lines. The National Electrical Safety Code requires them to do so. Homeowners are responsible for pruning trees near their property's power lines in accordance with the Electrical Industry Safety Steering Committee Guidelines. Any tree on public land is the responsibility of the electric company or the local council.
Only licensed tree services in New South Wales can prune trees near power lines. The standard “permit” of electric companies is quite simple, probably too simple. You let them have cables in your airspace (either for your property or somewhere else, either for money or for free) and there are two key points in agreement. The company can cut down or cut down, similar to a lumberjack, any tree or hedge on the property that obstructs or interferes with construction.
And you must not do, cause, or allow anything to be done on the Property that could cause damage or interference of any kind to the Works. This leaves open the question of damage caused by falling trees in the light of customary law, that is, the answer is not immediately clear. Usually, if your trees cause damage (as in the case of general liability, as mentioned above) and you foresaw it or should have done it, and did nothing to prevent it from damaging the cables, it would be your fault.If in doubt, ask BT or the power company for advice. They may say it's your problem, but they can drop the cables temporarily to make felling easier or disconnect the lines for a day to make it safer.
If the tree is on your property and you are in contact with the service line that goes to your house, you should prune it. Most of the time, landowners are responsible for the maintenance and conservation of trees on their properties, including pruning trees away from nearby power lines.If it weren't for the roof of the shed, I think it would have been better to let the tree go down and remove the cable, I've been wanting to tear down the tree for a while. If trees touch power lines or are very close to them, contact your local council or electricity distribution company for advice or hire a tree removal specialist (or arbologist) to do the work. There may be cases where Northern Powergrid recommends that power supplies be isolated to allow tree owners who want to cut down their own trees safely near overhead power lines, and this can be fixed.I also need special home insurance to cover if a tree causes any damage to a third-party property (to be fair, not many trees could actually any other house).
There may be times when you want to get more advice and guidance about the presence of trees near power lines, or you want to report a situation where trees are too close to power lines and consider that they represent a hazard. In cases of easements, utility companies can generally cut branches and trees as reasonably necessary to make the most of their easements, but they cannot cut down trees outside of their easements.Northern Powergrid is responsible for most of the costs associated with pruning trees and vegetation to achieve the required clearances between trees and power lines.
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