The recent storms have created a massive spike in demand for Tree Surgeons and Foresters. This in turn has brought out the cowboys. Last night the doorbell rang, and I cautiously opened the door (working in insurance I don’t have many friends!). A very dishevelled looking man told me he was in the area tidying up trees after the storm. I acted a little bit interested and asked him if he was insured. ‘Yes’ he said, and he showed me his ‘gardening’ insurance policy. I asked him about what tickets he had, and he was clearly irritated.
The reality is, this guy had no tickets, no proper insurance and was out for a fast buck. Last year was our worst year ever for serious injuries and here I am answering the door to the sort of individual who appears on BBCs Watchdog. The point of this post is to remind ourselves that it’s great for professional tree surgeons and foresters to make the most of the increase in demand for your services. However, it’s also a reminder that more than anything, the time really is now for statutory regulation of the industry.
I admit, it may cost you more money, but how many Gas Safe engineers want to revert back to the days when anybody could be a heating engineer? For the Arb and Forestry world, the real opportunity will come when regulation arrives and is enforced.
This is one for the various industry associations to discuss but these groups need your input to raise the industry standards. The time is now!
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