Why are Fac Renewals taking so long ?

[NullMac]

My experience in Scotland is the the Police send out a reminder about 3 months before a current certificate expires
If you do your bit (especially the GP report) and there are no other issues, a new certificate drops through you letterbox the day after the current certificate expires
Even if it doesn't, and as long as the police have all the paperwork no less than 8 weeks before expiry of your current certificate, you automatically get an 8 week extension

Cheers

Bruce

It is amazing what they can do to cover their own arse.

Police Scotland worked out that THEY would be "art and part" if their system led to you being in possession without a current licence. So they added a bit to the system to make sure that anybody that was about to expire had their certificate renewed that day.

So move on a few years and they are obviously relying on that approach for all certs and even then it is failing if they need to issue temporary certificates. All very convenient for them but it means they are sitting on your cert for 3 months.

Other parts of the civil service have got with the 21st century and everything is done online and much more efficiently. My mate was on the blower today. 24 pages printed off for his co-terminus certificate plus 10 for his airgun. Fill in in wi a pen and the FLO will collect it on her visit then repeat the same stupid questions as part of the interview. How many of you have ever answered yes to "Have you ever taken recreational drugs". WTF. Still it is Scotland, home to the criminally incompetent.

Contrast that with the DVLA and the Passport systems. You can get a new passport in 6 days.

The Police need to get with it

 

[Bowland blades]

You say that but in the HO guide it actually refers to the FEO clearing land so they’re the one on the ground doing the RA & if it goes Pete Tong you can guarantee the chiefs will have their Teflon overcoat on & say they based their decision on what the FEO told them were the facts.

I work in a process lead environment & have to carry out pretty much a continual DRA throughout my entire working day. I am under no illusion that if things go wrong the first place my boss will look is at my DRA to see if they can blame me for getting it wrong! They’ll do anything they can to shift the blame - I’m currently helping a colleague who is being told that it’s their fault they ended up in A&E after a work injury because they failed to follow process despite them doing exactly as they’d been trained to do!

I have personally always thought that land checks where to asses the shooters knoledge of what constitutes as safe shot or an unsafe one more than a land thing . However some FEO s / forces are carrying another agenda and opinion . Most FEOs are not active shooters and there is of course no safe land only a safe or unsafe shot
Some forces have never done the open and closed ground thing , quite correctly imho

 

[25 Sharps]

Messaged FEO today, want to change the .243 I bought a few weeks back, not quite grouping tight enough for my liking.

Email came back, if you can pop down tomorrow with the paperwork I’ll do the 1-4-1 while you wait…..

I don’t see what other departments can use an excuse.

 

[25 Sharps]

I have personally always thought that land checks where to asses the shooters knoledge of what constitutes as safe shot or an unsafe one more than a land thing . However some FEO s / forces are carrying another agenda and opinion . Most FEOs are not active shooters and there is of course no safe land only a safe or unsafe shot
Some forces have never done the open and closed ground thing , quite correctly imho

No, it’s a land thing, they are assessing the land for the current and any potential future shooters.

 

[25 Sharps]

Adverts recently for staff in a support role (admin) at c.£25k & FEO at c.£32k.

Given the responsibility that goes with both roles, got to ask why would anyone want to do either job as their main source of income?

Around here at least, it seems to be ex officers already drawing a police pension and topping it up.

 

[Dagless]

I submitted my renewal paperwork to Norfolk in December, my certificate expires in a couple of weeks and I hadn't heard anything until a couple of weeks ago when I was sent the standard 8-week extension letter.

Still not been contacted by an FEO to arrange a home visit though, not sure if this is mandatory or optional for them to do before they make a decision?

I've asked for a change to my conditions to allow me to take certain rifles deer stalking as my current certificate only allows target shooting, so maybe this is what is causing the delay.

Planning on filling up my ammo safe at the beginning of June (before my extension expires) if I haven't heard anything further!

 

[herts hunter]

im not with cumbria, mine went in in nov, still no ticket, beds harts and cambs are an absolute joke, one lady has helped as much as she can but the bosses should be sacked, next step tell the police and crime commisione but i guess his role is pointless too

I contacted the OPCC and received a huge email response,outlining the process,
I was also informed that if I hadn't received my grant, by a specified date, they would contact the FLO on my behalf, not happened yet.
They stated that they had contacted my FLO, who said that they had already responded to me, not happened yet.
I emailed them again and received a short email, informing me that my year long wait is not unique and that I have to be patient. If I made my customers wait a year before I even made a decision, I would currently be unemployed.
No end in sight

 

[GlennUK]

I contacted the OPCC and received a huge email response,outlining the process,
I was also informed that if I hadn't received my grant, by a specified date, they would contact the FLO on my behalf, not happened yet.
They stated that they had contacted my FLO, who said that they had already responded to me, not happened yet.
I emailed them again and received a short email, informing me that my year long wait is not unique and that I have to be patient. If I made my customers wait a year before I even made a decision, I would currently be unemployed.
No end in sight

Essex took around 6 weeks form start to finish for the issue of my 1st FAC beginning of this year. I am hoping to apply for a variation shortly, was told by the FLO it would be done by return, be interesting to see how it goes when i submit, the delays some are experiencing are awful.

 

[herts hunter]

Essex took around 6 weeks form start to finish for the issue of my 1st FAC beginning of this year. I am hoping to apply for a variation shortly, was told by the FLO it would be done by return, be interesting to see how it goes when i submit, the delays some are experiencing are awful.

If I lived 2 miles north, of where I currently reside, I would have been sorted months ago.