Hertfordshire residents given four weeks to hand in newly-illegal blank firing pistols
Hertfordshire Constabulary announced that residents in the county have a four-week window to hand over blank firing guns which are now illegal to own.
An amnesty period is now active and will remain in place until February 27, until then people in Hertfordshire are encouraged to hand in Bruni manufactured Top-Venting Blank-Firing (TVBF) firearms.
They can be surrendered at Hatfield or Stevenage police station and residents are advised to book appointments ahead of their visit.
A nationwide amnesty period has been launched to avoid the weapons falling into the wrong hands or criminalising owners who are unaware the law has changed.
Hertfordshire Constabulary reveals that previously the guns could be bought without a firearms certificate. However, it has been discovered many can be readily converted into viable firearms, the police force added.
Before February 27, these guns can be handed over to the police without fear of prosecution, provided the handguns have not been modified.
Residents in possession of the guns can make an appointment with Hertfordshire Constabulary by calling 101 and quoting Operation Pivot. Owners of Turkish manufactured TVBFs, which were the subject of an amnesty in February 2025, are also advised to take this opportunity to surrender their handguns and avoid prosecution.
Superintendent Clare Smith, who is leading the campaign said: “Serious firearms incidents are rare in Hertfordshire, but regular weapons amnesties are part of our continuing efforts to reduce violent crime in the county and nationally. While we do not anticipate that there will be many of these kinds of firearms in the county, they need to be removed from circulation as to prevent them falling into the hands of criminals and be converted into a deadly weapon.”