RULES designed to help people living in the shadow of leylandii hedges may help warring neighbours resolve their disputes - in an unexpected way.

Legislation that came into effect in June gave local councils powers to investigate complaints from householders who say the garden giants are obstructing their views or blocking out light.

Councils can order people - or businesses - to trim their hedges. Anyone who refuses can be taken to court.

However, the person complaining has to pay for the intervention, which can cost between £200 and £500 in areas where the local council imposes what is usually a non-refundable charge.

The complainant must also show that they have done everything possible to resolve the dispute on their own, which in some areas includes calling in a mediator before the council will take any action.

Steve Barker, a chartered town and country planner with regional law firm Blackett Hart and Pratt, based in Darlington, said people locked in disputes were finding that the regulations were not the panacea they expected.

He said: "People were waiting for this legislation because they thought it would be the solution to a lot of neighbour problems. In practice it has a number of pitfalls to would be users.

"Those who are put off by the extra cost or cannot afford access to justice may find the law doesn't provide the solution they are looking for. Where possible, the parties may get together and feel the money they have to pay in fees and fines is better spent on a tree surgeon.

"It could bring together those neighbours who are still on speaking terms or can pluck up the courage to extend an olive branch."