Japanese knotweed
A lender's letter asks about knotweed and the valuation is silent. Has either document identified the plant in the garden?
No. Neither document has identified the plant in the garden. The lender’s letter asks about knotweed, which is a question, not a finding that the plant is there. The valuation is silent, which is an absence of comment, not an identification and not a clearance. MoneyHelper is clear that a mortgage valuation is not a structural survey. Silence in it is not a survey of the beds. Neither paper has named Japanese knotweed in this garden.
Last reviewed 24 October 2026. Written for buyers in England and Wales unless this answer says otherwise. No named surveyor has signed this page. It is general guidance, not a report on your house, and not legal advice.
What is the fuller explanation?
Lenders ask about knotweed because it can affect their decision. The asking does not put a surveyor in the border and it does not match a stem to the plant. A valuation that says nothing has simply not dealt with it in writing. You cannot read the blank as “none seen” unless those words appear. You also cannot read the question as “some found”. Identification would be a statement that the plant was seen and recognised, or a specialist report. These two documents do not contain that statement.
Show both papers to the solicitor and answer the lender from what is actually known, including your home survey if that report did or did not see the plant. Do not invent the lender’s criteria for why it asked. A down-valuation, if one later appears, would be the lender’s figure, not a plant list. If nobody has identified the growth in the garden, say that, and do not let the letter stand in as if it had.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- What does the lender’s letter actually ask, rather than find?
- Which sentences in the valuation mention the garden or knotweed?
- Has any enclosed report stated that the plant was seen?
What are the typical next steps?
- Answer the lender from identified facts only.
- Do not read silence as a clearance of the garden.
- Keep the letter and the valuation separate from a plant survey.
Costs vary with the building and with who you instruct. Where this page does not cite a published figure, ask the surveyor, a relevant specialist, or your solicitor for a written quote. Do not treat a forum average as the price.
Also asked about this
Does a mortgage valuation become a knotweed survey if it stays silent?
No. MoneyHelper is clear that a mortgage valuation is not a structural survey. Silence on knotweed does not identify the plant and does not clear the garden. The lender’s letter only asks. Neither document has identified Japanese knotweed here. A plant question needs a report that actually deals with the ground.
Can you reply to the lender that the valuation cleared the beds?
No. You cannot reply that the beds were cleared when the valuation is silent. Silence is not a finding of absence. The letter has not identified the plant either. Tell the solicitor what each document does and does not say, and do not invent a clearance the valuer did not write.