If you have a few trees in your yard, and you’re planning to hire an arborist, you’re on the right track. As you know, hiring an arborist prevents the trees from being removed. Although you also need to call an arborist for tree removal, it’s best to hire them to take care of the trees instead of removing them.
Meanwhile, hiring an arborist isn’t an easy task. It’s a crucial decision that you should make to ensure that your trees are in good hands. In this article, we’ll give you some of the questions you should ask when hiring an arborist.
1. Do You Have the Proper Certifications?
When hiring an arborist, ensure that they have the proper certification to handle trees, especially complicated ones. For instance, if you need to relocate a tree, the arborist should have the proper equipment, and enough knowledge and experience to avoid complications. Besides, if the tree has been transferred without proper care, it might die.
One of the most common certifications you should ask for is one from the International Society of Arboriculture (ISA).
2. Can You Provide References or Reviews?
A professional arborist has enough experience that they can provide references and reviews. When you visit their social media page or website, you can easily access the reviews written by legitimate clients. However, if you’re having doubts about the online reviews, it’s best to move forward and look for other options.
Meanwhile, if you continue meeting or contacting the arborist with questionable online reviews, make sure to ask the right questions, and don’t be swayed by their marketing strategies, unless they’re legitimate.
3. Are You Insured?
All of the responsibilities of an arborist are dangerous, so they should be insured. Before hiring one, you should ask them about their insurance coverage, and that they should be able to compensate you if ever they damage your property.
At the same time, workers should have enough insurance coverage in case they encounter accidents that require medical assistance.
4. Do You Have Enough Experience with This Type of Work?
Since the tasks of an arborist vary in terms of difficulty level, they should have enough experience depending on the tasks you’re hiring them for. For instance, if you’re looking for tree removal services, they should be able to remove the tree without damaging its surroundings. They should be able to assess the situation first instead of removing the tree right away. When you ask them this question, you can also enquire about their tree removal process.
5. Can You Provide a Detailed Quotation?
Of course, the budget is also a factor when hiring an arborist, so you should ask if they can give an estimate of the whole work, including the additional fees. If the quotation is too low, it may be too good to be true, so try finding more options.
Meanwhile, if it’s too expensive, you should also ask why they have such high rates. Of course, if the arborist is more established, it can make sense why their rates are higher than usual.
6. What are the Safety Precautions You Follow?
Knowing the safety measures they implement while working can give you peace of mind. If you know the arborist and the crew are wearing the proper gear and techniques, and adhere to the safety standards, you can assure that the work will be done without any problems.
7. Do You Follow Industry Standards?
Arborists follow certain standards to make sure that the work is done safely. Whether it’s from national or international guidelines, everything should be done accordingly to ensure the safety of everyone, the trees, and the properties.
During the first consultation, you can ask this question so that you’re aware if they follow the right procedure or if they can just do the job the mediocre way.
8. Will You Provide a Written Contract?
When you hire an arborist, they should provide a written contract, especially since the job can be an accident risk. Additionally, the contract can serve as proof of hiring them, and the specific terms that both parties agreed upon.
9. How Will You Handle Unexpected Issues?
In case of unexpected situations, how are they going to handle them? For instance, if a tree seems okay, but it ends up having some decayed parts and structural issues, the arborist should be able to think and act quickly to solve the problem.
10. What Will You Do with the Debris?
After working with trees, it’s common to have debris, such as leaves, branches, and wood chips. So, before hiring the arborist, you should be aware of whether they’ll take care of the clean-up or not. Usually, this depends on you. If you want to clean up the place after, you should inform them beforehand. On the other hand, if they charge additional fees for the clean-up, you should be aware of the pricing.
Final Thoughts
Once you find the right arborist who will take care of your tree, this can be a long-term relationship. But while you’re still looking for one, don’t forget to incorporate these questions during your first consultation to make informed decisions.
