Stricter age-verification checks for all knife retailers announced

Today (28 January), the government announced stricter age-verification checks and a ban on doorstep drops will be introduced to greater protect young people from knife crime.

A two-step system will be mandated for all retailers selling knives online requiring customers to submit photo ID at point of sale and again on delivery. In addition, delivery companies will only be able to deliver a bladed article to the same person who purchased it.

Under the new measures a person may need to submit a copy of a photo ID such as driving licence or passport, as well as proof of address such as a utility bill, before showing ID again when the package is delivered. This could also include a person submitting a current photo or video of themselves to an online retailer alongside their ID.

It will also be illegal to leave a package containing a bladed weapon on a doorstep when no one is in to receive it.

Last year the Home Secretary, the Rt Hon Yvette Cooper MP, commissioned Commander Stephen Clayman, the national police lead on knife crime, to carry out a full review into the online sale and delivery of knives. The full report is expected at the end of the month, and stronger ID checks are one of the recommendations.