getting an open fac

glyn

Well-Known Member
hi guys i am looking for a bit of guidance if possible , i have just applied for a fac ,with devon and cornwall ! all of my stalking will be by invite or booked days ,4 weeks booked in scotland (booking confirmations provided) and bookings in devon (confirmation provided) also by verbal invites in devon and scotland "names and contact details provided" ( all have large areas covering quite a few various farms),now ! the land over which most of the scotish stalking takes place is vast ! and not owned by 1 organisation or estate just a case of on the day it will be decided which area to stalk ! also on a smaller scale in devon the same thing could/would apply so would not be possible to confirm land clearance at short notice if needed as i ssume this will take a few days for each force to communicate with each other and get back to me ,if i am issued the standard restricted ticket this would probably stop me stalking on quite a few days per annum due to getting confirmation! what do you think the chances of me getting an open cert on first issue are ?
I am ex RFD(scotland) , surrendered OPEN FAC (13 years ago in scotland)held for 9 years,DSC1 ,just started dsc2 , no adverse history at all .if its any help all of the land is shot over with a .308 held by open certificate owners and i am applying for .25-06, any help and guidance appreciated .

ALL THE BEST GLYN
 
I was told that:

a closed ticket will have a condition that states that you can use [the rifle] on any land cleared by the [home office?/chief of police - can't remember the actual body name] for that calibre

an open ticket means that yu are deemed to have sufficient knowledge and experience to be able to assess yourself (without having to check for clearance) whether the land you intend to stalk on is safe for that calibre.

I was told that with my closed ticket (when it arrives later this week I'll check the actual wording of the condition) all I had to do was check with the landowner / holder of the shooting rights for the clearance, since all my stalking (like yours) will be bought or by invite.

The only time you'd need to check with the local force would be if the landowner/holder of shooting rights didn't know what clearance it had...

Of course I'm new at this so it would be interesting to hear what those with more experience say...
 
I would compose a letter outlining why you feel that a grant of an open certificate would be appropriate. Emphesise the fact that you have already been the holder of an open FAC and your RFD.
This is such a subjective area that it comes down to an individual opinion rather than sound policy, In my case i have had two FEOs one was tight as anything and I got the feeling had the agenda of not granting anything the other one (thankfully current) is quite relaxed and sensible.
I moved house and when the chap came round to check my security I asked "while your at it can I have a .308 and an open FAC" which was granted.
I suspect you may get many different answers to this problem. I guess the best advice would be polite but persuasive.

Pete
 
I ve just applied for a new FAC which has just been granted as restricted for deer calibres. I tried the same line of argument and was advised quite clearly that there was no requirement to advise the Firearms Department of any shooting that would be taking place on Scottish Estates or any estate I attended as a paying guest for the purpose of shooting deer

When I questioned when this was a requirement I was advised that it applied to land on which I could not prove prior history via landowner or holder of sporting rights. I was also advised that land can be checked within 24hrs if I contacted the firearms dept by telephone. If it wasn't cleared for the calibre requested then they aimed for a 3 day turn around to have it re-checked.

The FO told me that they are more concerned with experience of the shooter rather than the fact that they are causing you an inconvienience
 
thanks for the replies !
i went with the firm but polite route and i picked it up yesterday after quite a few hic cups along the way, along with way too many hoops to jump through that were put there with dis regard to the HO guidance ,needed the advice of basc ! but they did not need to get involved directly in the end ( but it certainly changed my mind over the basc subs with the service i received from their from the firearms dept )Also a bit of intervention from a couple of FRIENDS "CHEERS TONY ",helped immensly,but i eventualy got what i wanted so alls well now, off to pick up the guns next week on the 25th from a rfd friend in sw scotland,unfortunately i will have to stay a WHOLE week in scotland :lol: as im not sure i could manage to drive all the way back down to devon in a shorter time ;) ,just have to find something to do whilst i am up there ;) ;) .
 
well done glyn,good result.have a safe trip up to scotland mate.look after tony for me and you may just see me down that way over the winter,im just about to change jobs so not sure yet on holidays.
 
cheers andy ! certainly will enjoy scotland i think tony's up for a vistit next year !,would be good to meet you if/when you come down ,enjoy the SD TRIP next week !
 
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