When selling your property the law society will require you to fill out a TA6 form. The pack that your solicitor will pass over to the purchaser will include this form. Within the TA6 form there is a specific question with regards Japanese knotweed. The guidance states, “The seller should state whether the property is affected by Japanese knotweed.
If you are unsure that Japanese knotweed exists above or below ground or whether it has been previously been managed on the property, please indicate ‘Not known’. If the seller chooses ‘No’ as an answer the seller must be certain that no rhizome (root) is present in the ground of the property, or within 3m of the property boundary even if there are no visible signs above ground.”
What this effectively means is that unless you are 100% certain you should be ticking the box ‘Not known.’ This would then leave it up to the purchaser to take a calculated risk or to purchase a report from a certified Japanese knotweed expert to ensure there was no Japanese knotweed growing on the property.
With an estimated 1.25 million homes in the U.K. affected by Japanese knotweed obtaining a Japanese knotweed report would certainly be our recommendation.
As you can see above, the ramifications of the laws regarding Japanese knotweed are far reaching. If you or anyone you know, needs any specific advise or require assistance with certification for your property, phone our team today.