Japanese knotweed
The survey says knotweed is in the garden and does not give a distance to the house. Why must you not invent a metre rule the report did not write?
Because the report did not measure a distance and did not write a metre rule. Japanese knotweed in the garden is the finding. Adding a figure the surveyor left out invents a precision the inspection did not use. A number remembered from somewhere else is not a sentence in this PDF. The survey does not become more accurate because a buyer supplies a round figure. Knotweed is reported on the plot without a stated gap to the wall. Use that wording. Do not invent the gap.
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?
Distance is sometimes discussed around knotweed and lending. This report chose not to state one. That may be because the stands were not taped, because more than one clump exists, or because the surveyor would not reduce the finding to a single measurement. Writing an approximate distance into an email creates a fact the survey will not support. If a number is needed, it has to be measured and written by someone who will stand behind it. It should not be filled in from a rule of thumb.
Tell your solicitor the survey reports knotweed and gives no distance. A specialist can map the stands if a lender, or you, need that plan. This home survey has not produced it. Do not add a metre sentence when you forward the PDF. Treatment belongs with a contractor who has seen the plant, not with a gap you inferred. The finding stays a record of presence until a proper measurement is made and written down by the person who measured it.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- Where does the report place the knotweed, if it names a bed or a fence?
- Does it ask for a specialist survey rather than state a measurement?
- Do the photographs show context without a distance you could honestly quote?
What are the typical next steps?
- Quote the knotweed sentence as written, with no distance added.
- Tell your solicitor the report contains no metre measurement.
- If a measured plan is required, instruct a specialist and do not invent the figure.
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
Can the photographs be scaled later to create the missing distance?
Not honestly, as if the survey had measured it. A picture without a scale and a recorded method is a poor tape. The report did not state a distance. Do not manufacture one from a photo and send it as the survey's figure. If you need a measurement, measure properly or ask a specialist to do so.
Does silence on distance mean the plant is far from the house?
No. Silence means the distance was not stated. The knotweed could stand near a wall or further into the garden. The survey has not chosen. Inventing a comfortable gap is the mistake to avoid. Read presence as presence until a measured survey says something more.