We are still seeing a high number of Japanese knotweed claims
against surveyors; the product of much anxiety around JKW, which
seems to have steadily increased since the turn of the millennium,
reaching fever pitch over the past few years with photographs
showing JKW growing through concrete and stories of destruction and
loss of value to property.
In addition to the criminal and planning offences, we have seen
a spate of claims in nuisance, claims against vendors for
misrepresentation and professional negligence claims against
surveyors. The main problem with JKW, which differentiates it from
other invasive species, is that it is difficult to eradicate.
A number of bodies had provided some guidance on the issue of
JKW, starting with the Environment Agency in 2006, which published
a best practice paper entitled "Managing Japanese knotweed on
Development Sites" and culminating with the RICS Information
Paper published in 2012 (now out of date and soon to
