Why Is Tree Removal So Expensive?
If you’ve just had a quote – or ideally three independent quotes to ensure you’re getting a fair price for the right service – for tree removal, you might be shocked at how much it’s going to cost you. There’s no doubt that tree removal is an expensive service, much more expensive than most people realise, and if your quote has come in at a lower price, it might be time to investigate that particular company a little more; if they’re cheap, there’s a reason for that.
But most of the time, good tree removal companies are going to charge a high amount for their services. Before you decide to take matters into your own hands, however, and try to remove the tree yourself, it’s a good idea to consider just why those costs are so universally (for the most part, at least) high. There are many different facets to think about that will go into how a tree removal company decides on its costs, and it’s not as simple as just cutting down a tree and dragging it away. Read on to find out more.
Complexity
You look at the tree that needs to be removed, either for safety reasons or aesthetic ones or because it’s going to cause damage to your property, and you think you’ll get a price from an expert to remove it. It saves you a job, and you’ll do it in a moment with nothing more to think about. Yet you can’t do even the ‘simplest’ of jobs quickly if it is to be done right, and the more complex the job, the more time it’s going to take and the more money it’s going to cost.
To begin with, a good tree removal company is going to need to plan the removal. Someone will have to take a look at the tree and work out the best way to remove it. This might mean that the job has to take a good few hours – maybe even a whole day just for one tree – depending on the complexity of the job, the location of the tree, what’s nearby, and the access to both get to the tree and then take it away.
Most of the time, a tree can’t be removed with just one swipe of a chainsaw, no matter how experienced the company is that you’ve hired. They will need to cut it into sections, and each section removed separately. Not doing this runs the risk of the tree falling unexpectedly or in the wrong direction, which means it could cause injury or damage. It could fall onto a road and stop traffic. It would be a disaster. This is one reason why tree removal is so expensive; it’s a complex job at the best of times.
Specialist Equipment
A chainsaw is an essential piece of equipment for a tree removal company, but it’s certainly not the only thing that is required to remove a tree. Depending on the specific tree’s size, the experts might need cranes or cherry pickers or other lifting equipment. They’ll need safety harnesses. They’ll need trailers and woodchippers, plus much more.
A good tree removal company will also need to arrange any licenses that might be necessary. Once they have the licenses, they will need to organise traffic control, for example. Again, this needs specialist equipment; temporary traffic lights, safety zoning, walkways, and more.
So although simply cutting down a tree doesn’t need anything other than a chainsaw, and it’s something you can do yourself, if you want the job done in the right way – the safe way – then you need a company that has all the right equipment and knows how to use it. Clearly, this is going to cost a lot more. Remember, though, that every extra penny you’re spending is absolutely worth it when you think of the potential problems that using the wrong equipment could cause.
Difficult, Dangerous Work
Although the experts might make tree removal look like a simple task that they can do reasonably effortlessly, this is not the reality. It just looks that way because of the many years of experience a professional tree removal company will have. The truth is that tree removal work is difficult and dangerous. The trees that need removing are often those with structural problems from storm damage or many years of being neglected – that’s the entire reason for removing them – and those structural problems lead to the tree being particularly dangerous to work on. The danger intensifies if the tree is dead; dead trees are brittle and have no flexibility, and when cut into, they can shatter and break apart in unexpected ways that even an expert might not have planned for.
You might not have considered the fact that many trees need removing because they are causing issues with electrical cables, and those cables are running through the branches themselves. Another hazard that an amateur could easily die when dealing with.
In the best cases, no harm will come to anyone removing the tree or in the immediate area. They will do no damage to any buildings. They will remove the tree, piece by piece, and the area left tidy. This is why every tree removal expert wants to happen at each job. The problem is that there is always the risk of something going wrong – nature is unpredictable and must be respected – and because of this, the cost will be higher to make up for the danger involved.
Insurance and Licensing
As we’ve mentioned above, removing trees can be extremely hazardous. Experts will need to have excellent liability insurance to cover any damage that a tree removal job could bring about. There will also need to be insurance for the individual workers, for the equipment, and for every different element that goes towards making a tree removal company work.
This insurance is not cheap. Because there are so many potential dangers inherent in the job, and so much that could go wrong, the insurance premiums have to reflect that risk. Most of the time, the tree removal company will need to charge accordingly to pay for all overheads before making a profit. The better the insurance, the most it will cost. This is why it’s so important not to opt for the cheapest tree removal company, especially if they are a lot less expensive than everyone else. It might be that they are cheap because they don’t have adequate insurance; as the customer, this is something you’ll need to check before engaging anyone to do the work.
Training
Although every good tree removal company will have plenty of insurance to cover them if something goes wrong, relying on this insurance is never a good way to work. It would lead to mistakes – possibly very dangerous ones – and pride in the job would be lacking.
This is why you’ll also want to choose a tree removal company that gives its staff plenty of training. Anyone who works as a tree removal specialist must have the right level of training to do the job. This training should start from the moment they are employed, and it shouldn’t ever stop. Refresher courses are crucial to keep everyone at the top of their game, but since the tree removal industry moves on quickly, with new technology and ideas coming out all the time to make the work safer and more efficient, it is just as crucial that every team member stays up to date with any innovations and is able to do whatever is needed to be the best.
And here is another reason why the costs for tree removal can be so high. Good training will cost good money. But isn’t it better to have fully trained, qualified people carrying out your tree removal than someone who is just hoping for the best? This is why you should always ask to see your specialist’s certification. Don’t be shy about asking to see this and their insurance; you need to know you’re hiring reputable people, plus a good company with nothing to hide will be glad to show you what you need to see.
Conclusion
It’s clear that there is a lot more to tree removal work than taking a chainsaw, making one cut, and clearing away the tree that falls. As we’ve seen, the complexity of the job, access, insurance, training, the dangers involved, and the specialist equipment required are all reasons why, when added together, the cost of tree removals can be a great deal higher than you expected.
Yet understanding everything that goes into tree removal – safe tree removal by experts, at least – should give you an idea of how much work the job entails. Rather than assuming you could simply do it yourself with minimal training and the wrong equipment, you will be glad to pay the extra money to have the job done in the right way.
