long time

tolley

Well-Known Member
my renewal has been in now for some 7weeks the ticket ran out on the 20/12/10 phoned them but no return call as yet,i've had the police interview.
im i ok to use the rifles as the landowner as called about deer numbers :eek: is words not mine threes ok 5 two many on the the large field in front of the farm.
 
So you're basically in possession of firearms without a valid FAC.....is it ok to use them? I think not! You need to speak to the Police ASAP. JC
 
I had just the same thing before christmas, spoke to FLO as i was concerned, he told me not to worry as they had got the paper work. He said they were very busy, plus a big back of paper work. He said it was their fault not mine so just carry on as normal. Thankfully I did not need any ammo while I was waiting.
Ps this warwickshire.

Atb

Nick.
 
I had just the same thing before christmas, spoke to FLO as i was concerned, he told me not to worry as they had got the paper work. He said they were very busy, plus a big back of paper work. He said it was their fault not mine so just carry on as normal. Thankfully I did not need any ammo while I was waiting.
Ps this warwickshire.

Atb

Nick.

Thats why they have section seven temporary permits. If your contact at the Firearms dept is happy for you to be in possession of your firearms without a valid certificate then the very least they can do is put this in writing, having said that, if they are going to take the time to write a letter they may as well just process your renewal.
JC
 
spoke to the police today the women was unsure but said no you can't because you have no licence do you,:eek:i did'net want to push it any more, but she added it will be with me by the end of the week.
so is she saying im breaking the law ,being in possession of firearms with out a licence whats the difference if i go out or not.:eek:
 
tolley,

I will ask you one question which has two parts,

Are you in possession of a legal Fac or Are you in possession of a temporary issue Fac

if you have neither your are not legally allowed to hold in your possession a firearm....
Thats not a grey area its black and white mate.

if you dont have the Fac by its lapse date your guns will have to be put in to a rfd mate.

f.
 
If your certificate expired on 20/12/10 and you still have the rifles in your cabinet AND full access to them then you shouldn't. Furthermore and more concerning is the fact that your issuing force are aware of the situation and have done nothing to prevent your access to them while you have no valid certificate. While I can appreciate what this female has told you regarding your certificate being with you by the end of the week and it most likely being dated as valid some time before you get it, there will have been a period between 20/12/10 and the date it was reissued that you did not have a valid certificate,even it is back dated from today for arguments sake then up until today there was no valid certificate to cover you.Another problem you would have had since 20/12/10 is that if you had transported them to an RFD you would have had no certificate authorising you to do so and any RFD would have raised questions of your possession.
 
I had the same thing happen in Kent when the firearms license computerised system came into being. They had an estimated back log of ten weeks. That left me with no certificate for several weeks. I was told "Use as normal..We have your paperwork in hand". Knowing the law, I was not happy with the answer, especially as like many others on this site, the majority of my shooting was taking place outside the juristiction of the issueing authority.

Things have been dealt with faily quickly since then. Hope the police budget cuts do not hit the firearms department too hard, or we will be back to the bad old days of waiting many weeks for grant, renewal and variations.

Fred
 
Picture this....man ends up in court for illegal possession of firearms, his defense is some person on the end of a phone told me it was ok as it was there error....now then after the judge has got back off the floor :rofl: from laughing what do you think will happen.

Remeber one persons view "it our error" could be someone elses "you have the right to remain.....o and kiss your FAC goodbye as well" :scared:

Ask for a section 7, if you call BASC thats what they will tell you
 
If I were you, I would be pitching up at the firearms dept first thing tomorrow morning, highlight the issue to them and leave 30mins later with the temporary cover until your renewal arrives. I would also highlight that the 7 weeks they have had to process places the ball squarely at their feet although I cannot imagine a resistance to this request.
 
many thanks for all the replys,one thing i see is when the officer left after the interview a few weeks before my licence ran out he knew it ran out on the 20th ,his last words where can't see a problem here will process as soon as pos.
surely the fault lies with them.

not sure if to phone them (might start the ball rolling in the wrong direction)or wait to see if it comes by the weekend.
must say i feel a bit uncomfortable at the mo with the whole thing.
 
Can you email them with your concerns? At least you'll then have something on paper. Most FLD's contact details are listed on the Force website.
 
wonder what would happen if (god forbid) i was brokern into and the rifles were takern:evil: thought from my mate ,who needs mates like that, hes not helping.
 
wonder what would happen if (god forbid) i was brokern into and the rifles were takern:evil: thought from my mate ,who needs mates like that, hes not helping.

Trust me mate, rather than discussing this with us you need to be dealing with it by email to the head of the licensing dept cc'ing the ACC and I would be doing it sooner rather than later. For whatever the reason, it is not acceptable to be in posession of firearms without a current and valid FAC. JC
 
many thanks for all the replys,one thing i see is when the officer left after the interview a few weeks before my licence ran out he knew it ran out on the 20th ,his last words where can't see a problem here will process as soon as pos.
surely the fault lies with them.

not sure if to phone them (might start the ball rolling in the wrong direction)or wait to see if it comes by the weekend.
must say i feel a bit uncomfortable at the mo with the whole thing.

Tolley

This may be a bit strong but from your comment about 'waiting to see if it comes by the weekend' it appears that you DON'T seem overly concerned. Every reply on here suggests the same thing. And that is get it sorted ASAP. Do not wait. What happens if it does not arrive at the weekend? You currently do not have permission to possess/use a Sect 1 firearm. Trust me, pleading ignorance will not work. Suggesting it is their fault will not work. If you had gone into the dept today as I suggested, you would more than likely be sitting at home right now with a temporary authorisation in your wallet. As it stands you are currently sitting at home no further forward and still speculating.

All that would happen if you were broken into and the guns stolen, is a police enquiry ensuing to trace the culprits and you, now more than likely charged as well. Because if on realising your certificate had expired you had deposited them with an RFD they would still be in his shop and not under a wee shites bed.

Seriously mate, you cannot sit back and hope this sorts itself out especially if you value your sport.
 
many thanks for all the replys,one thing i see is when the officer left after the interview a few weeks before my licence ran out he knew it ran out on the 20th ,his last words where can't see a problem here will process as soon as pos.
surely the fault lies with them.

not sure if to phone them (might start the ball rolling in the wrong direction)or wait to see if it comes by the weekend.
must say i feel a bit uncomfortable at the mo with the whole thing.

Would you listen to some of the advice on here! Get to the department NOW and get your sec. 7 sorted!

"It's the police's fault" is not a valid defence.

"He knew it ran out on the 20th and said it would be fine" is not a valid defence.

The black and white of it is, you are in posession of section 1 firearms without a certificate. Whether the police have your paperwork or not, YOU DO NOT HAVE A CERTIFICATE and are therefore illegally in posession!

Don't think that because it's their delay that has caused you to be illegally in posession they will hesitate for one second to prosecute you for it! You have a duty to make sure your certificate comes through in time, and if it doesn't then you have the responsibility to make sure that the weapons are safely stored in any gap (or you have a section 7 authorisation)

Fact is you have been committing a very serious offence for over two weeks now. Your lack of action is frankly amazing!

I'll bet you didn't get anything in writing from the FEO or the woman at HQ. If you had something in writing then you "might" be able to claim some mitigation in court, though it'd be touch and go. As it stands you wouldn't have a leg to stand on!
 
spoke on the phone yesterday airing my concerns they assured me the certificate has been granted just not sent out and from the 21st ,the phone i made and all that are made to them are recorded .
it will be with you by the weekend ,you may use the firearms as normal until then.:D
also went on about xmas period,delays backlog etc .

all ends well
many thanks to all who replyed
 
tolley,

am i reading that correctly, they still insist that if your Fac does not turn up on time you can use your firearms as normal and all calls are taped so your fine. ?

if that is the case we are all wrong in our views? it is legal to hold a firearm even if your not in possession of an in date fac if the force gives the verbal ok.

erm me's thinks me's no takey the chancey with that one...... would you????
 
The offence is not being in posession of a valid FAC. I know people who have been given custodial sentences for posessing fired shotgun cartridges without a valid certificate, even though they HAD a cert, they didn't have it with them!

I will say it again. NO MATTER WHAT THEY HAVE TOLD YOU, WHETHER IT'S ALL RECORDED (on another point, did you tell them they were being recorded? If not then you have committed another offence, and certainly wouldn't be able to use it as evidence in court!) OR NOT, UNLESS YOU HAVE IT IN WRITING, THEY CAN, AND WILL, STILL ARREST YOU FOR POSESSION WITHOUT A VALID CERTIFICATE! DON'T BELIEVE THE WORD OF SOMEONE AT THE END OF THE PHONE, THE LEGISLATION IS VERY CLEAR, AND THERE IS NO ROOM FOR MANOUVER!

YOU MIGHT WELL GET AWAY WITH IT, BUT IF YOU DO IT'S JUST LUCK!

Sorry for the shouting, but I agree with central, is it worth the risk? Get in the car and drive there, sit in the front office until they hand you either a valid cert, or a section 7 permit, or you are NOT covered and could face big problems, from the loss of your FAC (permanently) to a lengthy prison sentence!

The law doesn't leave room for common sense in this case!
 
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