Home owner wins legal case against surveyor for failing to spot Japanese knotweed

A London home owner has won his legal case against a chartered surveyor who failed to identify Japanese knotweed growing in the garden of his property during a residential survey. According to invasive plant removal experts Environet UK, the case strongly reinforces the legal precedent that surveyors must fulfil their duty of care by identifying the invasive plant and if they fail to do so, they could be sued for negligence. Paul Ryb commissioned a Chartered Surveyor to carry out a Level Three RICS Building Survey of the ground floor flat in Highgate, North London, the most comprehensive survey available which provides an in-depth analysis of the property’s condition, including a visual inspection of the grounds. The surveyor found the property to be in excellent condition with very few defects and recommended that the sale proceed. But, the following year, a gardener discovered what he believed to be Japanese knotweed growing in the garden of the property.