For those other Europeans - and anybody else -firearms licensing in UK - LONG READ

[TFoley]

Before we start, West Mercia is not a single county, it is a conglomerate area of a number of county police forces near to and bordering Mid-Wales.

This article was first seen last November.

Remember that here in UK, in order to shoot an antique, you must have a Firearms Certificate [FAC] if it is rifled, and a shotgun certificate if it is smooth-bored and has a barrel/barrels over 24 inches long. ANYTHING with a rifled barrel, regardless of length, needs an FAC.

Also - ANY replica is similarly classed as a Section 1 Firearm or Section 2 shotgun.



News · Dealer & Industry News

What You Need to Know: West Mercia Q&A on Firearms Licensing​

On Wednesday 1 November 2023, PCC John Campion hosted a virtual Community Conversation on Facebook Live, focusing on firearms licensing in West Mercia. The event aimed to address concerns and provide transparency regarding the licensing process. DPCC Marc Bayliss and Chief Inspector Callie Bradley from West Mercia Police were present to answer questions submitted by the public. The conversation covered various topics, including licence fees, processing times, and the need for additional resources.

Licence Fees Review and Resource Allocation

During the conversation, it was revealed that licence fees are currently under review. PCC John Campion emphasised that the fees collected do not cover the full cost of the licensing process, accounting for less than 25% of the required funds. To ensure effective monitoring and regulation, West Mercia has allocated £250,000 for the purchase of five vehicles to visit off-road premises. An additional five vehicles are subject to approval in the 2024/25 financial year.

Recruitment Efforts and Backlog​

Recognising the need for additional personnel, West Mercia Police are actively recruiting three extra Firearms Enquiry Officers (FEOs). These officers will conduct interviews with applicants and their family members, assess the safety of their homes, and determine shooting locations. Chief Inspector Carrie Bradley emphasised the in new in-depth guidance from the College of Policing, meaning even more time spent assessing each applicant. Currently, West Mercia only has nine FEOs, resulting in delays in processing licences. To address this issue, extra administrative staff have been hired, and the recruitment process for more FEOs is underway.

Public Q&A​

Q) Why should we pay a licence fee?

A) The current fee does not cover the work that is required to grant licences and renewals, accounting for less than 25% of the required funds.

Q) What is an achievable target to process a licence?

A) Pre-COVID the forces were able to process fairly promptly: 12 months for firearms and 6 months for shotguns, but the backlog caused delays. For now, the force are focusing on shotgun licences as there is less processing and legislation. They are currently working at an average of 8 months wait for a shotgun licence and 20 months for a firearms licence.

Q) How long before licence expiry can put a renewal in?

A) 12 weeks, do not put it in before that.

Q) Delays mean a “depressed secondhand market”, how many guns are now in storage because of these delays?

A) Due to people not renewing in time, about 80 individuals at any one time need to lodge guns as their licences run out.

Q) How long are the medicals submitted alongside applications valid for?

A) Medicals have to have been within 6 months of application, however delays mean processing is longer than 6 months. When an individual gets a visit from their FEO they will ask questions to supplement the GP’s report and if they need extra info from the GP, the force will pay for this.

Q) Why don’t you make it a 10 year licence and bring in external forces?

A) It is in legislation that will not be changed, as well as safeguarding issues. Force will not bring in external help as the small budget needs to be put on own team.

Q) Why is there no response to emails?

A) The demand is too high, phone lines are open from 11-12 on weekdays. End of the week is quieter than the start. Only contact if you need to report something, then use the Firearms Licensing Portal online.

Q) How do I add an imported shotgun to my certificate?

A) If you imported a shotgun yourself, you have a duty to inform the force. Depending on which country, you would have to go to the proofing house in Birmingham or London.

Q) If you concentrate on shotguns and renewals is there a chance an FAC applicant may never get seen? If you have 33000 to monitor when are FAC applicants going to get their turn as a priority?

A) The new investments will speed everything up, firearms require a lot more manpower and FEO times.

Q) Does a renewal from long-standing shooter still need to have a visit from an FEO?

A) Up to 30% of FEO works are on renewals. A visit in these cases could be because the amount of guns possessed has changed or the land in which you shoot has changed and require a visit to assess safety.

Final Thoughts
The West Mercia Virtual Community Conversation on Firearms Licensing provided significant insight into the policing of firearms, as well as what the police force is currently doing to deal with the backlog. The review of licence fees, the increase of FEOs, the provision of appropriate vehicles, and the recruitment of more staff to streamline the selection process, will hopefully be recreated with police forces around the UK.

 

[Sir Boniface Harrison]

It is quite amazing the difference a 22 mile wide stretch of water makes. Even back in the 90's when I had a smooth - bored Parker Hale Enfield for re enactment purposes, UK Firearms law was cumbersome and at least for me difficult to navigate. Here in France BP guns of all kinds, with the single exception of the Ruger Old Army are available to buy over the counter with no license, and no requirement for safe stowage. I have heard anecdotally that this may come up for review, as a few (usually brass bodied) revolvers have turned up in the homes of political and religious extremists. But then, I heard this three years ago and nothing new has come up. I assume the Ruger Old Army is regulated on account of them being easy to convert to cartridge firing. Non lethal self defence materials such as pepper spray are likewise unregulated.

 

[Britsmoothy]

Why the storage? Just ask for a temporary permit of which one is entitled.
It's not the applicants fault the renewal is late if sent in in good time.
I kept my firearms at home after expiry and demanded a temporary licence.
Once I got the temporary and once my renewal suddenly turned up after asking for a temporary!

 

[Felonious]

That sounds miserable. Meanwhile in the US, walk into Walmart... They didn't even check my ID last time.

 

[neiljohn]

Why the storage? Just ask for a temporary permit of which one is entitled.
It's not the applicants fault the renewal is late if sent in in good time.
I kept my firearms at home after expiry and demanded a temporary licence.
Once I got the temporary and once my renewal suddenly turned up after asking for a temporary!

Many forces won't issue temporary permits unless your renewal is in at least eight weeks before expiry, which with GP's delaying the medical report, even if they refuse and you have to use a separate medcert company their office staff delay sending your file to the companies for week's, currently 6 weeks and counting in my case, so I'll be putting mine in storage.

My father had an Inspector and Sgt turn up one evening whilst waiting for his renewal a day after his FAC had expired thanks to the local station collator doing a daily sweep on every certificate holder in their area, they demanded his guns so they could confiscate then, he refused as they had no warrant from a magistrate, got up early next day and put them in storage. He found 4 officers with a magistrates warrant waiting for for him when he got home, his renewal took 6 months, FEO wasn't happy local officers had involved themselves without good reason, especially trying to confiscate without being instructed to do so.

 

[Britsmoothy]

Many forces won't issue temporary permits unless your renewal is in at least eight weeks before expiry, which with GP's delaying the medical report, even if they refuse and you have to use a separate medcert company their office staff delay sending your file to the companies for week's, currently 6 weeks and counting in my case, so I'll be putting mine in storage.

My father had an Inspector and Sgt turn up one evening whilst waiting for his renewal a day after his FAC had expired thanks to the local station collator doing a daily sweep on every certificate holder in their area, they demanded his guns so they could confiscate then, he refused as they had no warrant from a magistrate, got up early next day and put them in storage. He found 4 officers with a magistrates warrant waiting for for him when he got home, his renewal took 6 months, FEO wasn't happy local officers had involved themselves without good reason, especially trying to confiscate without being instructed to do so.

Only in Britain, the land of idiots.

From the statutory guidance to the police firearms licencing.

Limited automatic extension of certificates
6.4 The chief officer should normally make a decision on an application for renewal before the expiry of the certificate or registration, provided that the application has been made at least 8 weeks before the date of the expiry of the certificate. In the case of firearms and shotguns, where an application for renewal has been made at least 8 weeks before the date of the expiry of the certificate, and the police have not been able to make a decision on the application by the date of expiry, a limited extension of the certificate automatically comes into effect. The extension begins from the original expiry date of the certificate for a period of 8 weeks or until the police decide the application, whichever occurs first. This extension period allows the police a further period in which to decide the application. This is a statutory extension provided by section 28B of the Firearms Act 1968 and is intended to provide a safety net for applicants in exceptional circumstances where the police are unable to process and decide a case before the original expiry date of the applicant’s certificate. During this period of extension the applicant will remain entitled to possess, purchase and acquire firearms and ammunition as per the conditions of the original certificate. Chief officers should facilitate this extended entitlement by ensuring that the applicant is provided with a letter or other clear evidence that the certificate benefits from the automatic statutory extension (a suitable letter is provided on the National Firearms Licensing Management System).

6.5 The chief officer must always endeavour to make a timely decision on an application that benefits from the extended 8 week period before expiry of the extension period. A failure to do so will leave the applicant without a lawful basis for the possession of their firearms or shotguns and associated ammunition. Should such circumstances arise, the police should work with the applicant to make necessary arrangements for the safe, legal storage of their property until such time as the application is decided, or the police may consider the issue of a temporary permit, issued in accordance with section 7 of the Firearms Act 1968 (see below).
Section 7 police permit
6.6 Section 7 of the Firearms Act 1968 allows chief officers to issue a permit to allow for the lawful possession of a firearm and ammunition in accordance with the terms that are set out in the permit. The police may use this provision to allow for the continued possession of firearms and ammunition where a certificate is about to expire and an application for renewal has been made. This could apply where the application was made less than 8 weeks in advance of expiry, and the applicant therefore fails to benefit from the automatic 8 week extension referred to above. Or it could apply where that 8 week extension is about to expire and the police are still unable to decide the application.

6.7 The police must be satisfied that the issue of a section 7 police permit does not give rise to any public safety risk, which can normally only be determined after full consideration has been given to the application and relevant enquiries made. For this reason, section 7 permits issued to provide more time to consider an application for renewal should only be issued on an exceptional basis and where this course of action is considered to be unavoidable. These permits should not be used routinely to benefit applicants who do not apply for the timely renewal of their certificates, or who are otherwise uncooperative with the police while consideration is being given to their application. Chief officers should also avoid routinely using temporary permits as a means of managing licensing caseloads within their force.

6.8 Account should be taken of any reasons given by the applicant to explain a late application that would justify the issue of a temporary section 7 permit, and the police should consider each case on its individual merits. Where required, temporary permits should be supplied with an end date no longer than is reasonable to cover the expected period of processing and should not be issued if no renewal application has been received.

6.9 Chief Officers should ensure that their firearms licensing departments are sufficiently resourced to enable effective processing of applications, to avoid the need to rely routinely on the use of section 7 permits. Where police forces have made significant use of section 7 permits to help manage certificate renewal backlogs and have large numbers of people subject to these permits, effort should be made to reduce the number of firearms holders to whom this relates. There will be a six month period starting from the day of this version of the Statutory Guidance coming into force in which police forces that have significant numbers of firearms holders on section 7 permits will be expected to adapt their internal processes so by the end of that period they will have significantly reduced the numbers on section 7 permits and will minimise the future use of temporary permits.

6.10 Certificate holders must not be asked to rely on an expired certificate or registration. It is unlawful for them to do so.

 

[Britsmoothy]

Part of the above clearly states that a temporary permit allows for the continued use of the firearms and the purchasing of ammunition despite the holders license running out of date. This a holder is not automatically in illegal possession.
One has to remind the police that a holder wishes to fulfill their legal obligation with a temporary permit in writing.
There is then proof that should the police resist a clear argument can be made of legal obstruction by the police.
It also clearly put the onus on the police to be responsible for any reissue lateness, not the holder if the renewal was put in good time..
The guidance not only works for the police but can also work for the licence holders or applicants. Because unfortunately some police have crazy agenda's too!