A specialist company is warning landlords that the recent spate of named storms across the UK may have heightened the risk of Japanese Knotweed affecting rental properties.

Storms Dudley, Eunice and Franklin involved over 60 flood warnings and may have spread the knotweed, which is often found along riverbanks.

The weed is described by the Environment Agency as “indisputably the UK’s most aggressive, destructive and invasive plant” and has recently been the subject of updated advice and guidance from the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors.

It is estimated that up to 1.45 million homes in Britain might be affected by this invasive species, which has a reputation for being difficult to kill. 

Soil containing fragments of the weed can be broken loose in storms and travel on currents into neighbouring land, accelerated by recent flooding. 

“Japanese knotweed can grow through cracks and vulnerabilities in concrete, hard standings, and in worst cases destabilise foundations. Treating knotweed is critical, because an unchecked infestation can be extremely costly” according to Adam Brindle, found of Japanese Knotweed Specialists. 

“Don’t be fooled if you live outside of areas recognised for infestations because, if you’ve recently had flooding, it’s worth looking for red flags where knotweed has been spread by the UK’s recent weather events” he adds.