I recently renewed my shotgun licence but moved house a month later – the boxes are still ceiling-high in the kitchen! Do I have to pay for another licence just to change my address? Also, I’ve got an eye test coming up and think my prescription might have changed. Will this affect my licence at all?
Kind regards,
Ian from Worcestershire
In relation to shotgun certificates, fees are generally payable in relation to the granting and/or renewal of a certificate. A lower fee is also payable in the event that a certificate is either lost or destroyed, but no fee is generally incurred purely on a change of address. That said, the relevant police authority will normally wish to pay you a visit to inspect the security of your new home and the installation of your gun cabinet to make sure it meets the requirements for safety and security.
A routine eye test should have no bearing on your application unless, in extreme cases, it might conceivably impact on your ability to show that you have a good reason for possessing, purchasing or acquiring a shotgun. Interestingly, a recent ruling under US law (which said that a person with a physical disability cannot be prevented from buying, owning or carrying a weapon in public) has generated a heated debate in Iowa where gun permits have now been granted to people who are blind.
Stuart Farr
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