Never Say Never

The TA6 form is a legal requirement for anyone selling a property in England and Wales, and includes a question (23.3 in the 5^th edition, 2024) about Japanese knotweed. The form asks “Is the property affected by Japanese knotweed?” with possible answers ‘Yes’, ‘No’ and ‘Not known’.

There are explanatory notes for the form, which state that “If you choose ‘No’ as an answer, you must be certain that, even if you cannot see any growth above ground, no rhizome (root) is present in the ground of the property or within three metres of the property boundary…  If you are not sure, indicate this as ‘Not known’.”

As Knotweed specialists, it seems that the bar to answering ‘No’ is set at such a high level that it becomes effectively a ‘trap’ option, because even a specialist’s report would generally only use words to the effect that no Japanese knotweed was observed in the survey (not that none was present). Given that a fragment of rhizome as small as one gram can re-grow, it is very hard to verify.

This ‘trap’ has been seen in legal cases in the UK where buyers have sued sellers over Knotweed that has been discovered after the sale, or where there is an accusation of misrepresentation. The legal costs alone in some of these cases have run into six figure sums.

By answering ‘Not known’, the seller is effectively saying ‘buyer beware’ but it is also not clear at which point you are expected to state ‘Yes’ instead of ‘Not known’. If a programme has been signed off as complete (usually seen as two consecutive seasons of no growth following a successful treatment programme), it seems reasonable that the homeowner would be unsure whether the plant is dead or not – but also, if they put the programme in place, it’s clear they had an awareness that Knotweed has affected the property.

So, JKSL can’t advise on how to complete the form, but your conveyancing solicitor should be able to advise you. It is important to understand under what circumstances you would be better to answer ‘Yes’ if you have been aware of any Knotweed on site, as this could have potential implications further down the line and protect you from legal action.

For anyone buying a house, this is a question that definitely should not be ignored. If the answer is “Not known”, then at least some level of inspection of the property and the surrounding area (at least three metres) by a reliable surveyor is very much preferable. If the answer is “Yes”, this will most likely be picked up by a mortgage lender. The lender may require any or all of a survey, treatment plan, Japanese knotweed management plan and an insurance-backed guarantee – all of which JKSL can provide.

Chris Oliver
Operations Manager