Furniture designer who found Japanese knotweed behind shed at £700k home ... trends now
A furniture designer who found Japanese knotweed behind the garden shed after he moved into his £700,000 dream home has successfully sued the seller, leaving him facing a £200,000 court bill.
Jonathan Downing, 30, bought his three-bedroom house in affluent Prince George's Avenue, Raynes Park, south west London, from chartered accountant Jeremy Henderson, 41, in August 2018.
Mr Downing, who trained at the world-renowned Chippendale International School of Furniture, planned to make his home in the Edwardian terrace, as well as building a workshop in the garden.
But while tidying the garden soon after moving in, he discovered Japanese knotweed canes behind a large St John's wort bush which was growing next to the shed.
A furniture designer who bought his £700,000 dream home only to find Japanese knotweed lurking behind the garden shed (pictured) has successfully sued the seller
Jonathan Downing (left), 30, bought his three-bedroom house in affluent Prince George's Avenue, Raynes Park, south west London, from chartered accountant Jeremy Henderson (right), 41, in August 2018
Japanese knotweed is an invasive species, notorious for its propensity to spread and cause damage to building structures, as well as the difficulty and expense of getting rid of it.
Mr Downing subsequently sued the former owner, demanding he pay damages for misrepresenting whether there was knotweed at the property when he sold it.
Mr Henderson had answered 'no' to the question on the TA6 property information form asking if the property had been affected by knotweed and argued that he 'reasonably believed' he was telling the truth when he did so.
He claimed he could not see the knotweed because of the large bush, which also probably stunted the weed's growth before it shot up when the shrub was cut back after Mr Downing moved in.
But Judge Jan Luba KC threw out his case and handed him a costs and damages bill of more than £200,000 after finding he did not genuinely believe his property had not been affected by knotweed at the time he sold it.
Outlining the case at Central London County Court, Mr Downing's barrister Tom Carter told Judge Luba that an expert said the weed had probably been in the garden since at least 2012.
Mr Henderson had himself moved in in 2015, before selling up to Mr Downing in 2018, stating specifically in sales forms that there was 'no' knotweed affecting the property.
Mr Downing, who trained at the world-renowned Chippendale International School of Furniture, planned to make his home in the Edwardian terrace (above), as well as building a workshop in the garden
'The defendant could have ticked "Yes", "Not Known" or "No" - by ticking "No", the defendant chose to positively assert there was no knotweed at the
