Is my uk legal knife legal to carry or not

[Monstermash]

How do gang.

Got me a nice new grizzly bushcraft knife as recommended on the main UKP site which I keep clipped to my belt the same as I do my folding Stanley knife when I'm at work (tradesman)

I have read the info thoroughly but I'm still not clear if when I'm walking down the high st a plod asks me why I have it i have to say......what? I'm taking it to a display? Or that the law says I am entitled to carry this knife?

Please clarify for me.

Forget schools and nightclubs I'm talking about walking down the high street going about my legal, day off work business

Thanks
MM

[Deeps]

Hi MM, welcome to the forum, can you post a wee introduction in the 'welcome' section, just to let us know a bit about you and your prepping. Enjoy the forum.

[yorkshirewolf]

Welcome to the forum.

There's never going to be a hard and fast rule on this as it will come down to the Police officers discretion.

Is the knife visible to the general public? does it stand out? does it look dangerous? do you look dangerous?

If it's not visible whilst on your person, not falling onto the floor and you're not showing it off, then why would anyone even know it's there? and if you're behaving in a decent civilised manner, why would you be searched in the first place?

Just because something is technically legal (under 3 inches, non-locking, not on the banned list) does not mean an officer can't or won't seize it and nick you, but bear in mind, they could also nick you for carrying a screwdriver or a hammer if they have reason to believe you're up to no good with it.

So the answer to your question is yes, no and both!

[Alloneword]

There's never going to be a hard and fast rule on this as it will come down to the Police officers discretion.

Not according to the Met's Hogan Howe, I wanted to be 100% sure i was within the law as given i have been inside a wee bit i had to be careful, so i wrote to local plod and got a woolly answer, so went higher and wrote to local commander and again he gave a woolly answer, saying something along the lines of plods discretion, but not good enough for me the law is there for a reason and part of the reason is too make sure i stay within the law, so in the end i wrote to Hogan Howe and Home Security and explained when and where i would have it in my possession and the upshot that came back from Hogan Howe's office was so long as i don't use it in a threatening way, or enter school or educational premises, I am fine.

At the end of the day with something like this YOU need to be 100% sure what your doing is right and taking advice from a forum is not going to help you with plod or the CPS, you need to cover your own arse and IMO the best way is contacting plod directly and get the answer you need in writing and i took a scan of the letters and imported them to my phone and uploaded to a gmail account so hopefully you will be able to show plod you have paperwork saying it is ok for you to carry the knife in the fashion you have been, in my case i use it on the motorbike sometimes also cutting apples and i don't like biting down on the skin, now i know most will laugh at that but explain why you want it and let them give you their feedback.

IMO it's the only way to be 100% this place is not the right place to get the right advice that may need to be used one night on the side of the road or worse still in a court sometime.

You are responsible for covering your own arse, don't trust people on a forum to your legal situation, also if plod says you can't ask them to point out the legislation that says this, they may have a problem doing it.

All1

[gamekeeper752]

Common sense is the order of the day here, and has been covered before but if you travel into larger towns and cities you might fall foul of a section 60 public order act offence which has been put in place as there is a fear of violence in that area.

Like most things in this country many things are illegal but and this is the rub many things get let go, seen but not dealt with, etc, and its all about time place and situation, having seen that knife I as a police officer would be asking questions of you firstly on the street, and if and its a big if you cant explain things maybe you would be arrested or the knife seized.

if its hidden and your a normal person going about your business, its very very unlikely you would even be noticed, but if you push your luck show it around, have a road rage or domestic and get the bloody thing out or show the sheath from under your coat,or even are seen with it in something out of the ordinary , things may not go your way, after all you have a knife in your hand or have been showing it off in public your going to get arrested.

Simples.

[Jamesey1981]

Gamekeeper752, I think you're misunderstanding the knife that the op is referring to, it's not especially clear but if you look at the title and the text of the first post it isn't a sheath knife, it's a sub three inch slip joint non locking folder.
I think it's this one Pocket Buddy Unisex Edc/UK Legal Knife ... aybP8MNPRG

Such a knife can be carried for no reason other than that you can except in areas where knives of all kinds are specifically prohibited by law, a courtroom would be an example, even a legal knife will be confiscated on your way in whether you're there as a defendant or for any other purpose.

I quote from the government website "Your rights and the law" section:
"It is illegal to carry a knife in public without good reason - unless it’s a knife with a folding blade 3 inches long (7.62cm) or less"

You would not have grounds to arrest the person carrying it or sieze the knife legally unless they were doing something naughty with it, such as using the knife in a threatening way.

I personally would agree that keeping it hidden is the best bet though, if someone were to feel threatened by it being there and call the police they may use that as grounds to arrest you so you can explain yourself in court, would be a bit of a stretch if you have a copper with any sense, but like any profession, there are some that don't have any sense.

I personally keep screenshots of the relevant law as well as a web link to the government website in case I have to explain myself to a police officer that is unclear on the law, as yet I've never had to, any police I've dealt with haven't been a problem.

[gamekeeper752]

Your right i did look at the wrong one, and it seems to fit the legal side of the law in relation to knifes of this type, but possession of it may still get you looked at.

I would like to know from anyone who has got one, if the blade has restricted closing to stop it catching your fingers, which may come under the locking part. Of course we wont know until case law is challenged.

there is also the clear fact that those of us who are the most law abiding most often fall foul of it and those that don,t,won't.

I still hold with I might have it, but I wont and don't flaunt it.

[Monstermash]

@jamesey1981 spot on mate it's the sub 3" folding non locker that you provide a link to

@gamekeeper752 so yes it's completely legal in as far as the law currently states I guess my conundrum is this - if I carry this knife or tool on my belt as a matter of course it may be that I find myself in a scenario or location that an officer has reasonable grounds to enquire what I'm doing with it and I want to provide suitable reassurance that I'm neither unhinged or intent on using it for any purpose other than being prepared to use it legally. The kind of scenarios that I am preparing for though (cut someone free from a seatbelt from a crashed car or cutting down someone I might find hanged or that I eat a lot of apples) does make me sound a bit nuts.

I accept that it is unlikely I would have to explain myself but there have been times its slipped off my belt and I may undergo a stop and search. I don't want my nice tool retained because I was unprepared with what to say to them.

Perhaps I can simply state that the law says I am entitled to carry this type of knife? Which whilst true my not cut the mustard on the day.

I appreciate that this may sound like I'm asking for official legal advice, I'm not I just want a steer

[yorkshirewolf]

So...

is it 'technically legal' to carry a knife (uk legal spec) - yes.

are there places where you cannot carry a uk legal knife - yes.

can the knife (even though uk legal) be seized by a police officer at their discretion - yes.

can you argue the toss over laws, letters, wording etc? -yes.

will it do you any good with an officer who thinks you're being a smart-a**e - no.

Do the Police err on the side of caution where carrying of knives is concerned? - yes.

Have i personally had experience of the Police and carrying of knives - very old conditional discharge says yes.


Keep it UK legal, keep it out of sight, don't take it with you anywhere obviously problematic (court/school/police station) and you should be fine.

[Deeps]

I have to say, I don't get the need to carry it on your belt other than to make some kind of statement. Keep it in your pocket and you'll avoid 99% of any queries. I do get that you'd like clarity on where you stand, I'm the same but in the immediate term it seems that we're at the whims of the individual officer, of course you can challenge it and it might well come down to 'taking their number' and going over their heads. The 'smart arse' aspect will either play for you or against you depending on the personality of the officer, he might accept that you know your stuff or he might just think smart arse and take it as a 'contest'. Its a minefield, and short of the above advice of getting a letter you (we) face the potential of falling foul of a copper who's had his ear bitten off by his missus that morning.

Personally, one of the reasons I favour the SAK is that its not threatening, people are familiar with it and it doesn't have any knobbly 'quick draw' attachments or the like, its not 'tacticool', I also have a maglite solitaire attached to it for added 'friendliness'. You can still make out my old Navy nickname scratched into it too, not the traditional calling card of someone who intends to use it for murder-death-kill.