Alternative Weed Control

As a health and safety professional, I’m a fan of evidence-based approaches and I love a good scientific study (at this point, I’m sure you’re wondering how you can get me along to your next party!), so it was with interest that I read the recently released Cardiff Council study into the effectiveness of three […]

Ignorance *IS* A Defence

In a recent case heard at County Court in London, the plaintiff’s claim was dismissed, and the defendant found not to be liable for damages or loss of value to her neighbour’s property caused by Japanese knotweed. Furthermore, the plaintiff was ordered to pay the defendant’s legal costs, making her liable for a bill estimated […]

Auditing – What’s the Right Balance?

For many people, the word “audit” inspires a sense of impending doom and a panicked search through files and hard drives to scramble together enough information to deal with whatever unexpected requests the terrible sadist of an auditor might come up with. I’ve been on both sides of numerous audits and I don’t see anything […]

Government Guidance on Knotweed

While “enjoying” the current summer hiatus in government and given the continuing popularity of INNSA’s Code of Practice – Managing Japanese Knotweed, we at INNSA felt it was worth a quick update on what the government does still have in place as regards invasive plant species management. There are two principal sets of guidance we’ve […]

INNSA 2022

I must admit in the last few months to having had the odd doubt about the relevance of INNSA. The Property Care Association (PCA) pretty much covers everything a trade body should cover and does so with a huge amount of experience to back the service that it provides.

NOT WORTH THE PAPER THE IBGS WRITTEN ON

Insurance-Backed Guarantees (IBGs) are a fact of life within the Japanese knotweed industry and have been for several years. They are as much a feature of the conveyancing process as the plethora of other indemnities available to mitigate against every little issue that ever marred the balance sheet of a mortgage lender.

The Customer is Always Wrong

Have you noticed a continued slipping of standards in pretty much every service industry? From restaurants to garages from hotels to delivery services …it’s like everybody’s forgotten how to look after their customers.

What are the biggest problems facing INNSA members?

In the coming week, we will be sending out an INNSA Member Survey and we would love to get as many responses as possible, to help us understand how the association can best serve the interests of its members. But, as Chairman, I feel particularly strongly that we need to focus on the industry issues […]

Invasive Aliens – What’s it all about?

So, contractors, how do you explain “Invasive Alien Species” to your clients? It can all sound a bit like the X-Files when talking of ‘aliens’ taking over the land… Do you go down the route of explaining about the ease with which the plants are spread? Or go down the “Need-for-biodiversity” route? Or do you […]