FAC interview do's & don'ts!!

[BenBhoy 4,706]

On 14/09/2019 at 13:38, Meece said:

These are the questions in his mind.  Have you been  good or bad?  Are you safe to be issued with a weapon? Are the public going to be safe?  Do you have good reason to have a weapon? Do you have ground where the weapon can be safely used?  Is the weapon and ammunition going to be kept in secure conditions whereby  no passing Individual can get easy access.  Not whether you've got the right biscuits . Don't forget they've got a big workload and a lot of paperwork so it should be in and out. Anything  else would be classed as unprofessional or even something more serious.

Ps. Be realistic in what you ask for but think over the horizon for what you might  wasnt or else you will have to apply for a variation which will cost you financially and some time to acquire.  Also it isn't a bad thing to have a spare slot in case something  happens to come along. 

I've only put down the rimfire as I physically only have space in cabinet for one more gun. Moving house next year & getting a bigger cabinet then putting in for a CF too

[Rimfireboy! 1,463]

5 hours ago, BenBhoy said:

I've only put down the rimfire as I physically only have space in cabinet for one more gun. Moving house next year & getting a bigger cabinet then putting in for a CF too

 

5 hours ago, BenBhoy said:

I've only put down the rimfire as I physically only have space in cabinet for one more gun. Moving house next year & getting a bigger cabinet then putting in for a CF too

Put in for it now if you have the land. When you’ve moved house you’ll still have four years to fill the slot. Oh, and while you’re at it, might as well add a .22 and fac air

[Born Hunter 17,783]

Again, by all means ask for your CF now, but Notts will say no and to apply after you have had your rimmy for a little while. You'd have to have an extremely compelling case for them to grant CF on first application.

[mushroom 13,160]

Best not to mention the ex Mrs or current Mrs, in a bad way

[Meece 1,958]

On 17/09/2019 at 19:48, Born Hunter said:

Again, by all means ask for your CF now, but Notts will say no and to apply after you have had your rimmy for a little while. You'd have to have an extremely compelling case for them to grant CF on first application.

No force should be allowed to operate like this.  If you have been a good boy,  you've got good reason, you've got the ground and the security is ok then they can't refuse.  This is where the shooting orgs and to a degree ourselves have allowed this sort of nonsense. I know that the applicant doesn't  have a want at the moment but if he does in the next five years he will have to pay for a variation with all the hassle that entails.

[Born Hunter 17,783]

15 minutes ago, Meece said:

No force should be allowed to operate like this.  If you have been a good boy,  you've got good reason, you've got the ground and the security is ok then they can't refuse.  This is where the shooting orgs and to a degree ourselves have allowed this sort of nonsense. I know that the applicant doesn't  have a want at the moment but if he does in the next five years he will have to pay for a variation with all the hassle that entails.

Fella, I believe we should have a constitutional right to bare arms, never mind CF on first application! You’re preaching to the choir. 

[BenBhoy 4,706]

Big thanks to everyone who commented & gave advice. All went well today. Not granted open but he did give 'advice' how I could get open before the 5 years. Cleared for fox and ALQ. Absolute gent FEO, very easy to talk to & question.

Just wait for cert to drop through letterbox now, like a kid waiting for Christmas!!

Thanks again all, some top blokes on here.

[Meece 1,958]

How can they justify 5 years for an open certificate ?  I would find loads of ground and get them to come and inspect every bit for clearance. Just to be a bloody pain to them. I'm just like that to them. You use their own system to harass them. You'd have it open quick.  One time I  sent the cert back three times for them to correct errors of their making. Take no prisioners and shoot to kill.  Good hunting.

[Sausagedog 7,381]

My probation was three years. I just asked the landowner at other locations if a rifle had been used there before. Pretty much all said yes so that was good to go how I understood the conditions.

[Alsone 789]

This is the trouble and one of the issues the current firearms review is looking at. Currently the law is a lottery because each force makes it's own rules up and then hides behind the fact the Home Office rules are just guidelines and not legally binding. You have some forces using their own forms, requiring their own additional requirements. Some grant CF at 1st grant. Some only RF. Some will grant open, some only closed. Some will grant if GP refuses to provide a med, other won't. It's just a joke. My region used to be really restrictive and grant almost nothing but for a number of years now it grants almost everything (subject to usual precautions and requirements). It's a refreshing change and there have been no incidents which speaks volumes to show that the HO guidelines work well if stuck to. 

[lllluke1 329]

I agree the laws are stupid.  Mate of mine has had .22lr and .222 for around 40 years and when he applied for .243 they said he had to be mentored.  When I applied for mine I got .22lr and .223 first go, but the .223 had to be mentored, both of them where on a closed ticket.

[Sausagedog 7,381]

9 minutes ago, lllluke1 said:

I agree the laws are stupid.  Mate of mine has had .22lr and .222 for around 40 years and when he applied for .243 they said he had to be mentored.  When I applied for mine I got .22lr and .223 first go, but the .223 had to be mentored, both of them where on a closed ticket.

All they are doing is covering their arses from imagined possible blame at your/our expense.

Politicians are very good at passing the book on and making the very people that they are supposed to be serving, the same people that pay their wages too, suffer. 

[Alsone 789]

12 hours ago, Sausagedog said:

All they are doing is covering their arses from imagined possible blame at your/our expense.

Politicians are very good at passing the book on and making the very people that they are supposed to be serving, the same people that pay their wages too, suffer. 

That and some forces are still anti. My force used to only grant rf at 1st grant. You couldn't hope for CF until the 2nd or 3rd renewal and open for about 10 yrs! 

Then there was an admin related incident that led to some staff being renewed and following that, policy changed and became more liberal. Some in the same area I know got CF at 1st grant and open, albeit with a mentoring condition. It is worth saying here the reason for the open part was because it was for purchased deer stalking so impossible to tie to land. The mentoring part does state though they can only shoot with a qualified guide. That said, the overall policy is now liberal and by following the guidelines it both suits shooters and has proven safe.