Japanese knotweed from a railway embankment has reached within feet of my front door. In May Network Rail told me to contact them again if I did not hear within 20 days. I didn’t hear, and I have since phoned four times. In the meantime, the weed has grown and I want them to take action.
YO, London
It’s a timely inquiry. This month the court of appeal ruled that Network Rail was liable for damages to two residents whose homes had halved in value because weed on its land had invaded their gardens.
Network Rail had appealed against an earlier ruling that it should pay compensation for the cost of treating the weed and for the depreciation in value of their homes, and demanded that the homeowners prove the plant had caused physical damage. The appeal court ruled encroachment on to another property amounts to physical damage.
The day after the Observer contacted Network Rail it sent a team round and promised treatment would start this month. “Once reported, Japanese knotweed growing on our land is treated for three to five years or until the problem is eradicated,” it says.
If this doesn’t happen Ralph Bullivant, at Hill Dickinson solicitors recommends you write to the company warning it that if it doesn’t take action you may pursue a legal claim to recover the decrease in your property’s value. In cases where the weed encroaches from a private residence the local authority may help.
If you need help email Anna Tims at your.problems@observer.co.uk or write to Your Problems, The Observer, Kings Place, 90 York Way, London N1 9GU. Include an address and phone number. Submission and publication are subject to our terms and conditions: see http://gu.com/letters-terms
