Note: This advice is given by the CAP Executive about non-broadcast advertising. It does not constitute legal advice. It does not bind CAP, CAP advisory panels or the Advertising Standards Authority.
Some replica guns can be readily converted into real firearms and made to fire and therefore subject to the Firearms Act 1982. Marketers offering such replica guns should ensure that they are registered firearms dealers or should be able to confirm that the replicas are unable to be converted and therefore do not fall within the provisions of the 1982 Act. Advertisers should not deliberately target under-18s, should make clear that the guns are replicas and should ensure that their ads are responsible. One advertiser (Direct & Specialised Distribution Company Ltd, 25 August 2004) stated clearly that it was offering a replica gun but was found to breach the Code by using irresponsible language such as “hours of family fun”.
In 2003, the dangers of replica guns was the subject of press advertising by the Mayor of London. In response to a complaint from an independent firearms consultant, the ASA considered that modified replica guns could fire “real bullets” and “could kill or wound real people” (Mayor of London, 14 January 2004).
Last modified : 01 July 2010