Cutting a neighbor’s tree roots in Frankfort, KY is legal self-help under Kentucky law when those roots are damaging your driveway, sidewalk, or foundation — but the same law that lets you cut also limits how far you can go before the liability flips onto you.
Can I Cut My Neighbor’s Tree Roots That Are Damaging My Driveway in Kentucky?
Yes. Kentucky follows the “Massachusetts Rule”: you can cut roots and branches back to your property line at your own expense, but you can’t force your neighbor to remove the tree.
Kentucky adopted this self-help rule in 1985. A living tree’s owner isn’t required to cut back limbs or roots that cross onto your property, but you’re free to trim anything — branches or roots — once it crosses your property line, at your own cost. You can’t go onto your neighbor’s side of the line to do it, and you can’t demand they pay for your work, even if their tree is the one causing the damage.
What Happens If Cutting the Roots Kills or Destabilizes the Tree?
Cutting more than about a quarter to a third of a tree’s root system on one side can kill it or make it unstable enough to fall, and that shifts the liability onto whoever did the cutting.
The self-help right to trim doesn’t cover reckless or excessive cutting. If you sever enough of a mature tree’s roots that it dies, leans, or comes down in the next storm, you can end up responsible for the tree’s value or for damage the fall causes — the reverse of the situation you were trying to fix. That’s the real reason this is a judgment call and not a weekend project: a shovel and a saw can solve a small root or create a much bigger, more expensive problem three feet from your house.
When Should You Call a Tree Professional Instead of Doing It Yourself?
A large surface root, a root within a few feet of the trunk, or any root thicker than 2 inches is worth a professional look before it’s cut — a trained eye can tell you which roots the tree can afford to lose.
A professional root-pruning visit — identifying which roots are structural versus feeder roots, cutting cleanly instead of tearing, and sometimes installing a root barrier so the problem doesn’t come back — typically falls in our $150–$500 small-job range depending on the tree’s size and how many roots are involved. That’s a lot cheaper than a driveway replacement, a dead tree, or a liability dispute with a neighbor.
FAQ
Can I cut tree roots on my own property even if the tree is on my neighbor’s land?
Yes. Kentucky’s self-help rule lets you cut roots and branches back to the property line at your own expense, as long as you don’t go onto your neighbor’s property or kill the tree in the process.
Can my neighbor make me pay if I cut too many roots and their tree dies?
Potentially, yes. If cutting removes enough of the tree’s root system to kill it or make it fall, you can be held responsible for the tree’s value or for any damage the fall causes, since that goes beyond ordinary self-help trimming.
Do I need my neighbor’s permission to cut roots on my own side of the property line?
No. Kentucky law doesn’t require permission to trim what crosses onto your own property, but you can’t cross onto theirs to do it, and excessive cutting that harms the tree can still create liability.
Source: Campbell County Attorney, Kentucky — Rights of Adjoining Landowners as to Trees and Bushes.
Not sure whether the roots you’re looking at are safe to cut yourself? See our full root damage guide for Frankfort, or if the tree itself is the real hazard, read what to do when a neighbor won’t remove a hazardous tree. Call or text (859) 310-1209 for a free on-site look before you cut anything.
Last updated: September 23, 2026