Subsidence, settlement and heave
The seller says the council allowed a crown reduction and no consent is in the pack. What tree-work permission has the survey not checked?
The survey has not checked the tree-work permission the seller says the council allowed. No consent is in the pack. A crown that looks reduced, and a seller's account of permission, are not a search of the council's tree records. The survey has recorded the claim and the missing paper. It has not confirmed a tree preservation order, a conservation-area consent, or any other permission. That check has not been done. The home survey has left that permission unchecked.
Last reviewed 24 October 2026. Written for buyers in England and Wales unless this answer says otherwise. No named surveyor has signed this page. It is general guidance, not a report on your house, and not legal advice.
What is the fuller explanation?
Tree work on a protected tree, or on a tree in a conservation area, can need consent before the crown is reduced. The home survey does not interrogate the council register and does not hold the consent. If the seller says the council allowed the work, the document should be in the pack or obtained through the solicitor. Its absence means the permission has not been seen. The surveyor can note a reduced crown if that is visible. They cannot turn the seller's sentence into the consent itself.
Ask the solicitor to check what tree-work permission was required and to obtain the consent the seller describes. Do not treat a smaller crown as proof the council agreed. Tell them the survey has not checked that permission and the pack does not contain it. Keep any later council reply separate from the seller's say-so. The survey has not searched the council's tree records.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- What did the seller say the council had allowed?
- Was any consent in the pack you saw?
- Did you search the council's tree records, or only hear the claim?
What are the typical next steps?
- Ask the solicitor to obtain the tree-work consent the seller describes.
- Do not treat a smaller crown as proof the council agreed.
- Keep any later council reply separate from the seller's account.
Costs vary with the building and with who you instruct. Where this page does not cite a published figure, ask the surveyor, a relevant specialist, or your solicitor for a written quote. Do not treat a forum average as the price.
Also asked about this
If the crown looks smaller, has the council's permission been checked?
No. A crown that looks smaller shows, at most, that someone has cut it. It does not show the council allowed the work, and the survey has not checked that permission. No consent is in the pack. Appearance is not a permit.
Does the seller's email stand in for the consent missing from the pack?
No. An email from the seller repeating the story is still the seller's account. It is not the consent missing from the pack, and the survey has not checked the council's permission. Ask the solicitor for the actual consent. A message is not that document.