Buying & Transferring Firearms
When you first receive your Firearms Certificate, obviously there will be no weapons shown as possessed. However you will have the authorisations for the firearms you requested, and which were agreed by the police. Remember, these are the only weapons that you can legally hold on your certificate. You will also have authority to purchase the agreed quantity of ammunition for the calibre of the weapons shown. You can purchase the firearms authorised on your certificate, not only from a Registered Firearms Dealer, but also from other Firearm Certificate holders.
The final handing over of the weapon must be in person, and the person transferring the firearm to you, must enter the details on the back of your Firearm Certificate at Table 1. It is not you that enters the details, but the seller.
Remember the old maxim - you only write on your own certificate when you sign it!
Having acquired your firearm you must, within seven days, inform the police authority that issued your certificate in writing of the transaction. The person transferring the firearm, if a certificate holder, must also inform his issuing authority.
The Firearms (Amendment) Act 1997 requires you to notify the Chief Officer of Police who issued your certificate within seven days if you:
- transfer a firearm to any other person including selling it, hiring it out, lending it, or making a gift of it; or
- purchase or acquire a firearm; or
- deactivate a firearm or have it deactivated by someone else;or
- destroy a firearm; lose a firearm; or have one stolen.
Section 33 (3) of The Firearms Amendment Act 1997 requires that such notification shall:
- contain a description of the firearm in question, (giving its identification number if any); and
- state the nature of the transaction and the name and address of the other party
and any such notice shall be sent by registered post or the recorded delivery service.
These requirements apply even if the matter happened outside Great Britain. However, as a result of changing technology since the introduction of the above section, Durham Constabulary Firearms Licensing are willing to accept written notification by facsimile and email.
It is an offence not to notify.
If this procedure is carried out properly, firearms should never go astray and a complete record should exist of their present and previous owners.
Similarly, when the time comes for you to dispose of one of your firearms to another certificate holder, you must enter the details of the transaction on the back of the purchaser's certificate. If you dispose of a firearm to a Registered Firearms Dealer, he will enter the transaction in his register. Although there is no legal requirement to inform the Chief Officer of Police of the disposal of a firearm/shotgun to a Registered Firearm Dealer, your written notification to the Firearms Licensing Office will allow your records to be maintained and eliminate unnecessary police enquiries or delays during the assessment of any forthcoming application for the renewal or variation of the firearm certificate.
It is not necessary to send in your certificate for such notifications unless you wish to apply for the authority to replace the weapon you have transferred.
Good Reason
Firearm certificates differ from shotgun certificates in that each individual weapon held on the former, needs to be authorised for its use. It is for this very reason that an applicant is required to satisfy the Chief Officer of Police, of his reason for requiring that weapon, for that purpose.
The holder of a shotgun certificate can acquire as many shotguns as he can safely accommodate, without having to prove his reason for needing each individual weapon.
The holder of a firearm certificate has a far more limited flexibility when it comes to possessing firearms. It is a requirement of the Firearms Acts that such certificate holders specify their reason for each and every firearm they require.
The police must also be be satisfied that the weapons requested are suitable for the reasons stated. For instance, it would not be acceptable to request a .303 rifle for controlling rabbits!
Most firearm certificate applications fall into one of two categories:
Target shooting
An applicant for a firearm certificate needs to demonstrate "good reason" for the weapons requested. In the case of target shooting, "good reason" can only be satisfied by the applicant being a full and active member of a Home Office approved club (probationary membership is not acceptable), and the club must be approved for the use of the firearms requested in the application.
It is now a legal requirement that firearm certificates issued for target shooting show in the ' range use' condition, the being the name of the principal Home Office approved club to which the certificate holder belongs. This does not limit the certificate holder from using the firearms authorised only at that location as certificate holders may be members of more than one club, and may be involved in competition shooting at other venues.
When applying for a firearm certificate, applicants should bear in mind that they should only apply for:
the number of firearms that they can store securely
the authority to acquire the number of firearms which they intend to use, and are able to use, on a regular basis
Since 1997 it has been a requirement that Home Office approved clubs keep a record of members' attendance and the weapons that they use and the competitions, if any, they take part. Moreover clubs are required to notify the police of those members who have let their club membership lapse, or who have not attended in a twelve month period. Therefore, unless there are extenuating circumstances, this could mean that if a certificate holder were to fail to attend the shooting club regularly, or did not use all of his firearms regularly, good reason for all or some of the firearms held on his certificate could be called into question. This could perhaps ultimately lead to the full or partial revocation of the firearm certificate.
In respect of Section 1 ammunition it is usual only to allow possession of the same calibres as the firearms possessed or to be acquired, and it should be noted that ammunition must also be stored securely.
When good reason has been satisfied and all other enquiries have proved satisfactory a firearm certificate will be issued showing the weapons which you are authorised to purchase; the certificate will also bear conditions showing the purpose for which the firearms are authorised.
Vermin Control and Deer Stalking
The above activities differ from target shooting in as much as there is no necessity for the applicant to belong to a Home Office approved club. However there are certain other requirements which must be satisfied.
Firstly, the firearms requested must be suitable for the task in hand. There are certain recognised and acceptable calibres of firearms on for most vermin and deer, guidance on this can be found in theVermin/Deer Stalking section.
Secondly, an important point is the suitability of the land, which must be safe for the use of the calibre of the firearm in question. Initially land is deemed suitable, or not, by the Chief Officer of Police. This necessitates a land inspection by a Firearms Enquiry Officer, in conjunction with the land owner or his agent. Many and various factors must be taken into consideration including the acreage, position of public footpaths, surrounding roads and dwellings and the general lay of the land. The land owner, or his agent, must also give written permission for the firearms requested to be used on his land for the purpose stated.
When all these points are satisfied, a firearm certificate may be granted, authorising a specific weapon(s) and ammunition for use on a specific piece of land and "any other land deemed suitable by the Chief Officer of Police."
Like the authorities on a firearm certificate granted for target shooting, only the firearms authorised can be acquired.
It is important to remember that firearm certificate holders requiring expanding ammunition for vermin control, fox control or deer stalking must ensure that they request this authority to be on their certificate. Registered Firearms Dealers will not sell you expanding ammunition or the missiles thereof, unless your certificate authorises so.
Many shotgun certificate holders use their weapons for "rough shooting", which is also vermin control, but unlike a shotgun certificate, a firearm certificate only authorises specific weapons and often limits their use to certain places. As with target shooting applicants, a limiting factor is also the number of weapons and ammunition that can be safely accommodated.
There are other uses of firearms that are acceptable. Each and every application will be treated on its own merit. If you are not sure, whether or not, your reason for requiring a firearm certificate is acceptable, please contact the Firearm Licensing Office for advice before submitting your application.
However, please note that applications for the grant of a firearm certificate for "self-protection" will be refused since firearms are not considered to be an acceptable means of protection in this country.
