Court victory for couple in knotweed tangle with neighbour

A COUPLE have won a legal battle with a pensioner who failed to stop Japanese knotweed spreading on to their drive.

Adam and Eleanor Smith, both 44, claimed the notoriously invasive and damaging weed had knocked £50,000 off the value of their house.

They took Rosemary Line, 74, to court with both sides blaming each other and have now won the case.

The ruling is said to reinforce an important legal precedent for homeowners to prevent Japanese knotweed spreading from their property on to neighbouring land.

The Smiths bought their three-bedroom detached home in Maenporth, Cornwall, from Mrs Line for £200,000 in 2002. At the time, Mrs Line retained some land alongside the house which was not part of the sale.

But the destructive weed began growing on both pieces of land, including the drive of Mr and Mrs Smith’s house.

The couple, who run an electrical business, began legal action because the weed was blamed for reducing their £ 500,000 home’s value by 10 per cent.

The case was heard before Judge Simon Carr at Truro County Court last October but the ruling in favour of the Smiths has just been released.

It was decided on the basis that while it is not illegal to have knotweed on land, it is illegal to allow it to spread.

Mrs Line has been ordered to employ Cornwall Council’s contractor Cormac over the next five years to eradicate the weed, as well as pay undisclosed court costs believed to run into tens of thousands of pounds.

Speaking after the ruling, Mr Smith said: ‘It’s a shame it got to this. We’ve been asking her for 13 years to sort it out and it could have been done without going to court.

‘She played the part of a little old woman being victimised but the judge could see right through her. It’s caused a lot of stress and I am glad it’s over now.’

He declined to say how much the court had awarded in costs. Japanese knotweed (Fallopia japonica) was brought to Britain by the Victorians as an ornamental garden plant and to stabilise the soil beside railway tracks.

The weed is enormously difficult to control. It grows extremely fast – up to 4in a day during summer – and can force its way through concrete and tarmac. Some homeowners have been told it is cheaper to knock down and rebuild their properties than treat the knotweed.

In his evidence about the damage caused by the knotweed, Mr Smith said: ‘The only investment I’ve got is my house. I have no money in the bank.

‘I’ve worked very hard for my property and I don’t want it ruined. It’s my family home.’

Mrs Line was unavailable for comment after the ruling.

She previously claimed to have done everything possible to control the knotweed, saying: ‘Over the past 15 years, I have sprayed the knotweed with herbicide, utilised the services of the council, cut and burned the weed and now entered into a contract with Cormac Ltd to complete an annual knotweed maintenance programme.

‘Mr and Mrs Smith claim the knotweed on my land is invading them. The knotweed was first recorded on my land in 2001, 26 years after it had been present on [what is now] their property.’

In legal papers she accused the couple of bringing a ‘malicious’ case to ‘encourage’ her to pass ownership of the land to them.

Commenting on the case, Mark Montaldo, from Cobleys Solicitors, said: ‘This is an important decision and should put people on notice that it will no longer be tolerated to knowingly allow Japanese knotweed to grow on your property unchecked.’

‘Important legal precedent’