Legal Advice- is there a 3000 ft lbs limit for UK deer use ? Some police forces believe there is.

[75]

I ask as I have heard magnum calibres are now being declined in England, based on the above? 300 Win Mag is what- 3400-3700 ft lbs ?

Heard from where? Internet here say?

There are lots of folk who have magnum calibres and equally lots of folk who’ve been refused them. And we’re very unlikely to get the know the real reasons why they’ve been refused them!

This is a non-issue for me…

 

[Brave Echo Niner]

Heard from where? Internet here say?

There are lots of folk who have magnum calibres and equally lots of folk who’ve been refused them. And we’re very unlikely to get the know the real reasons why they’ve been refused them!

This is a non-issue for me…

I have heard this from several individuals first hand and seen the emails from a Police Inspector who made the decision to decline it based on ft-lbs.

Stating it was declined 'as .300 Win Mag ammunition falls above the 3000 Ft-lb limit which the HO guidance indicates in the table by omission of any calibres higher than this limit'.
The police refused to comment on the ballistic suitability and the overall good reason as 'that was not advised to them in the HO guidance and as such they will only consider it based on the ft-lb threshold'.

I personally will be ensuring I have appropriate legal insurance to cover taking this to court should my FEO/police force have an issue with the .300 Magnum, which I have held for several years now for culling large deer at extended range, at renewal.

Ben

 

[Namman]

I have heard this from several individuals first hand and seen the emails from a Police Inspector who made the decision to decline it based on ft-lbs.

Stating it was declined 'as .300 Win Mag ammunition falls above the 3000 Ft-lb limit which the HO guidance indicates in the table by omission of any calibres higher than this limit'.
The police refused to comment on the ballistic suitability and the overall good reason as 'that was not advised to them in the HO guidance and as such they will only consider it based on the ft-lb threshold'.

I personally will be ensuring I have appropriate legal insurance to cover taking this to court should my FEO/police force have an issue with the .300 Magnum, which I have held for several years now for culling large deer at extended range, at renewal.

Ben

Why are larger bore rifles thought to be more dangerous than the majority of popular deer calibres ?
After all we use ( or should use) Mother Earth as a backstop.
As for the maximum carrying range of their bullets , there are plenty of high bc bullets in smaller calibres which can outrange the bigger bores.
Some of us hunt big game abroad regularly, and this is also mentioned in the guidance allowing for use on the larger deer in the UK.
Pure ignorance rules.

 

[Conor O'Gorman]

This is a subject our shooting organisations need to be involved with. @Conor O'Gorman can you let everyone know what the BASC party line is on this matter please.

Ultimately it comes down to good reason and police forces do have varying approaches to guidance and where BASC members need advice our firearms team is available to assist.

Firearms

Whether you are new to owning a firearm and are looking for general information, or would like more detailed advice, we’ve got you covered.

basc.org.uk

 

[Edinburgh Rifles]

Since when did the law and common sense come into granting or not granting a calibre/cartridge?

That is guidance document
Whether the relevant authority chooses to apply it is largely based on the applicant and the application
If you fail that’s entirely on the applicant.
You havent provided a strong enough case

Having had the discussions with numerous FEOs why my 300 Norma Magnum and other larger magnums are excellent cartridges for deer, at no point did an upper energy limit come into the conversation

I would imagine if you were in Norfolk or some flat and flinty corner of the country….energy may well come into it
But I doubt it as very few FEOs have read the guidance IMO