RESIDENTS affected by tree damage in Crewe should not give up on compensation claims, says a householder.

Martin Hulme says he has been plagued by problems at his home on Plane Tree Drive.

Lifting paving slabs on his drive and cracks in external walls, around his front door and in his porch are, he claims, caused by Cheshire East Council's highways department's failure to manage tree growth on the pavements outside his home.

He contacted Nub News after reading about similar problems experienced by residents in Gainsborough Road in Crewe.

A Freedom of Information (FOI) request made by Crewe West councillor Connor Naismith has revealed the council has not paid out any compensation to householders for damage caused by highways trees in the last five years.

Of 33 open claims for tree damage, 64 per cent were in the Crewe area, including Mr Hulme's claim which he says he has made progress with after starting it more than three years ago.

In recent weeks he has watched as contractors, working on behalf of an insurance company, have been trying to rectify the damage.

"It started three years ago with a crack in the porch and then my drive started going," recalled Mr Hulme. "I was told the road had the wrong kind of trees, they're plane trees and they are forest trees.

"The nearest [tree] had gone 16 to 18 feet up my drive. I asked to have my porch rebuilt and not repaired.

"Cheshire East knows that if these claims come off then they've got a serious problem - there will be too many claims because they're literally all over Crewe. I am sure 30 to 40 per cent of people complaining about this kind of damage will give up.

"But the work on my home has been nearly completed and I would just tell people not to give up."

The householder says there was an initial reluctance to remove root growth from a tree outside his property, although now groundwork has taken place.

"It has been very bad. My paving stones lifted and were a trip hazard, so they finally agreed to put boards across them. I've had patching work done on the cracks in my porch and now I've had groundwork done," added Mr Hulme.

As well as the external damage to driveway, walls and porch, Mr Hulme says there has been movement in his property.

"We wanted to sell to downsize to a bungalow, but it has affected the price," he added.

"My next door neighbours, who are with Guinness Housing, had a workman go over on his ankle due to a raised paving stone and the drive was fixed within a fortnight.

"The stress it has caused me dealing with it all has left me suffering from panic attacks.

"But the Innovation Group (insurers) is handling my claim and an agreement was put in place that repair work would be done, although I felt it didn't go far enough."

Cllr Naismith has urged residents to make claims if they have evidence their properties have suffered and he believes the borough council could allocate some funds to cut back and prune existing trees in some areas of Crewe.

A Cheshire East Council spokesperson said: "We are investigating a number of complaints regarding trees in the Crewe area. Owing to the nature of the investigation we are unable to comment further."