{
  "url": "https://openlegislation.uk/crime-and-policing-act-2026/section-36",
  "json_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/crime-and-policing-act-2026/section-36.json",
  "legislation": "ukpga/2026/20",
  "legislation_title": "Crime and Policing Act 2026",
  "legislation_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/crime-and-policing-act-2026",
  "path": "section/36",
  "kind": "section",
  "number": "36",
  "heading": "Remote sale and letting of crossbows",
  "text": "(1) The Crossbows Act 1987 is amended as follows.\n(2) In section 1 omit “unless he believes him to be eighteen years or older and has reasonable ground for the belief”.\n(3) After section 1 insert—\n“Defence to offence under section 1: England and Wales\n1ZA Except where section 1B applies, it is a defence for a person charged in England and Wales with an offence under section 1 to show that they took all reasonable precautions and exercised all due diligence to avoid the commission of the offence.”\n(4) In section 1A (defences: Scotland)—\n(a) in subsection (1)—\n(i) for “It” substitute “Except where section 1B applies, it”;\n(ii) after “charged” insert “in Scotland”;\n(b) in subsection (3) for paragraphs (a) to (b) substitute—\n“(a) a United Kingdom passport (within the meaning of the Immigration Act 1971),\n(b) a passport issued by or on behalf of the authorities of a country or territory outside the United Kingdom or by or on behalf of an international organisation,\n(c) a licence to drive a motor vehicle—\n(i) granted under Part 3 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 or Part 2 of the Road Traffic (Northern Ireland) Order 1981 (S.I. 1981/154 (N.I. 1)), or\n(ii) issued in the form of a photocard by a member State, or”;\n(c) for the heading substitute “Defence to offence under section 1: Scotland”.\n(5) After section 1A insert—\n“Defence to offence under section 1: remote sales etc\n1B (1) This section applies if—\n(a) a person (“A”) is charged with an offence under section 1, and\n(b) A was not in the presence of the person (“B”) to whom the crossbow or part of a crossbow was sold or let on hire at the time of the sale or letting on hire.\n(2) It is a defence for A to show that the following conditions are met.\n(3) Condition 1 is that, before the sale or letting on hire—\n(a) A either—\n(i) obtained from B a copy of an identity document issued to B in a physical form and a photograph of B, or\n(ii) took such steps to verify B’s age as may be prescribed in regulations made by the relevant national authority, and\n(b) on the basis of that copy and photograph or those steps, a reasonable person would have been satisfied that B was aged 18 or over.\n(4) For the purposes of subsection (3) an “identity document” means—\n(a) a United Kingdom passport (within the meaning of the Immigration Act 1971);\n(b) a passport issued by or on behalf of the authorities of a country or territory outside the United Kingdom or by or on behalf of an international organisation;\n(c) a relevant driving licence;\n(d) any other document specified in regulations made by the relevant national authority.\n(5) In subsection (4)(c) a “relevant driving licence” means—\n(a) in relation to England and Wales, a licence to drive a motor vehicle granted under Part 3 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 or Part 2 of the Road Traffic (Northern Ireland) Order 1981 (S.I. 1981/154 (N.I. 1));\n(b) in relation to Scotland, a licence to drive a motor vehicle—\n(i) granted under Part 3 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 or Part 2 of the Road Traffic (Northern Ireland) Order 1981 (S.I. 1981/154 (N.I. 1)), or\n(ii) issued in the form of a photocard by a member State.\n(6) Condition 2 is that when the package containing the crossbow or part of a crossbow was dispatched by A, it was clearly marked to indicate—\n(a) that it contained a crossbow or part of a crossbow, and\n(b) that, when finally delivered, it should only be delivered into the hands of B.\n(7) Condition 3 is that A took all reasonable precautions and exercised all due diligence to ensure that, when finally delivered, the package would be delivered into the hands of B.\n(8) Condition 4 is that A did not deliver the package, or arrange for its delivery, to a locker.\n(9) Where the crossbow or part of a crossbow was dispatched by A to a place from which it was to be collected by B, references in subsections (6) and (7) to its final delivery are to be read as its supply to B from that place.\n(10) In subsection (8) “locker” means a lockable container to which the package is delivered with a view to its collection by B, or a person acting on behalf of B, in accordance with arrangements made between A and B.”",
  "extent": "E+W+S",
  "status": "prospective",
  "version": "current",
  "annotations": [
    {
      "type": "I",
      "label": "I1",
      "text": "S. 36 not in force at Royal Assent, see s. 255(1)(10)(b)"
    }
  ],
  "outstanding_effects": [],
  "provenance": {
    "source": "legislation.gov.uk",
    "source_url": "https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2026/20/section/36",
    "retrieved_at": "2026-10-31T10:30:58.060228+00:00"
  },
  "licence": "Open Government Licence v3.0",
  "licence_url": "https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/",
  "attribution": "Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives."
}