Japanese Knotweed · Report on Title scenario

Seller says there is no Japanese knotweed — can I rely on that?

Not as proof that the property is free from Japanese knotweed. A seller’s “No” answer records what the seller has said about the property, but it is not an expert inspection or a guarantee that knotweed is absent. A seller will not ordinarily be an expert in identifying Japanese knotweed, which may not always be apparent on an ordinary inspection. You are entitled to rely on what the seller has represented, and that representation can matter a great deal if knotweed is found later — but it is not evidence that the ground is clear.

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This scenario is drawn from Report on Title material dealing with this specific circumstance.

Historic title: Japanese Knotweed – Sellers indicate lack of · See the wording

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I’ve already bought the property I’ve discovered or become concerned about Japanese knotweed after completing my purchase. Check what this could mean →WhenIBought.com I’m a conveyancer I need Report on Title wording for this situation. View professional options →

What does the seller’s “No” actually mean?

The question comes from the property information form the seller completes near the start of the transaction. The seller is asked whether the property is affected by Japanese knotweed and can answer Yes, No, or Not known.

A “No” is the seller’s answer to a formal enquiry about the property. The TA6 requires sellers to answer truthfully, completely and as accurately as they can from their own knowledge, and to have a reasonable basis for their answers. Buyers are entitled to rely on the information given in the form.

But that does not make the answer an expert assessment that Japanese knotweed is absent. The TA6 itself recognises that sellers may not have legal or technical knowledge and may not know what happened before they owned the property. A seller who gives a misleading answer may be exposed to a claim after completion, but the answer does not replace appropriate investigation of the property’s physical condition.

Your conveyancer will report the answer and will normally advise that it cannot be relied on as proof. They are not in a position to verify it — they do not visit the property, and identifying Japanese knotweed is not a legal question.

Already bought and now found Japanese knotweed?

If Japanese knotweed was discovered after completion even though the seller said there wasn’t any, what happened during the purchase may now matter — including what the seller said, what your survey showed and what advice you received.

Tell us what happened → WhenIBought.com

Should I ask my surveyor about Japanese knotweed?

Yes, and it is worth asking specifically rather than assuming it will be covered. Three different people are involved here and they do genuinely different things.

Your conveyancer deals with the paperwork: the seller’s replies, any further enquiries raised on them, and how the position is reported to you and to your lender. Your surveyor looks at the property itself. A specialist knotweed contractor surveys the extent of any infestation and sets out what treating it would involve — and where there is a mortgage, it is a specialist’s documentation that the lender will expect to see, typically from a firm accredited by the Property Care Association or the Invasive Non-Native Specialists Association.

What your surveyor does depends on what you have instructed. A valuation carried out for a lender is not a survey for your benefit, and its scope is limited. A more detailed survey means a closer look, but it remains visual and non-invasive.

So if you have any reason for concern, say so before the inspection rather than after. A surveyor who has been told what to look for is in a much better position than one reading the same form you are.

What if my surveyor is concerned even though the seller said “No”?

Take the surveyor’s concern seriously. A surveyor who has inspected the property may have identified something that was not apparent to the seller when the TA6 was completed.

The usual next step is a specialist knotweed survey, confirming whether the plant is present, how far it extends and what treating it would involve. Where there is a mortgage, that survey and the documents following from it — a treatment plan, a completion certificate, an insurance-backed guarantee — are what a lender will normally want to see, and will usually want its valuer to see too.

Your conveyancer can and should raise the discrepancy with the seller’s solicitor as a further enquiry. The seller may have an explanation, and that reply is worth having in writing, because it becomes part of the record of what you were told.

From there it is a commercial decision rather than a legal one. Buyers in this position commonly agree a treatment plan with an insurance-backed guarantee, renegotiate on the cost of dealing with it, or decide not to proceed. What you should not do is treat the seller’s original “No” as having settled the question.

Does Japanese knotweed matter to mortgage lenders?

It can — and lender requirements differ materially. For example, some lenders use the RICS Japanese knotweed categories to determine whether the issue needs to be reported at all. Requirements for treatment plans and insurance-backed guarantees also differ, and even the distance at which knotweed on neighbouring land becomes relevant is not consistent between lenders.

This is not simply theoretical variation. Current lender instructions include different boundary distances, different minimum guarantee periods and different reporting thresholds. Some expressly identify circumstances in which the conveyancer does not need to report the issue; at least one states that it will not proceed where the property is affected.

The requirements of the particular lender therefore need to be checked rather than assuming that what was acceptable to one lender will be acceptable to another.

Research lender requirements → Lexsure Lender Archive

From the e-ROT archive

Historic Report on Title title

Japanese Knotweed – Sellers indicate lack of

Change date 11 March 2018Word count 166Deployment measure 7/10

The sellers have said that the property is not affected by Japanese Knotweed but we doubt that they are experts in this field and you cannot therefore rely on this statement. Japanese Knotweed is a highly invasive plant which is capable of causing damage to buildings and its presence on a property can deter both …

Historic wording. This is archived Report on Title material and should not be treated or relied upon as current precedent wording.

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