Amazon, Argos, The Range and Dunelm shoppers face new photo ID rules in stores and online if they want to purchase knives.
New government rules now mean shoppers will have to submit a photo ID at the point of sale, and again on delivery of online orders, as part of stricter age verification checks.
Under the two-step system, which will be mandated for all retailers selling knives online, shoppers will be required to submit an official identity document, such as a passport or driving licence, as well as proof of address, like a utility bill.
Online shoppers will also be required to show ID again when the package is delivered, with delivery firms only able to hand over knives to the person who purchased it.
The Home Office has also warned people may also need to submit 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 article on a doorstep when no one is in to receive it.
The rule applies to all retailers that sell knives over 5 inches long online, and is likely to apply to stores like Amazon, Argos, The Range and Dunelm, which all sell some kitchen knives and kitchen knife sets over 5 inches online that can be delivered to your door.
The stricter age verification checks come in the wake of a Southport knife attack, which saw murderer Axel Rudakubana able to buy a knife aged just 17.
Rudakubana used a knife purchased from Amazon to kill three girls at a Taylor Swift-theme dance class in Southport, Merseyside, in July, prompting Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer to promise urgent action to prevent under-18s buying knives online.
Current laws require sellers to operate an age verification system that is likely to prevent a person under 18 from buying a knife, but the legislation doesn’t stipulate the elements of such systems.
The sale of knives with a fixed blade of more than three inches long to under-18s is illegal in England and Wales, with retailers facing fines or prosecution if they breach the law.
Amazon said it took its responsibility around the sale of bladed products “extremely seriously” and had launched an urgent investigation in relation to “this tragic case”.
It confirmed it used “trusted ID verification services” to validate the age of customers on orders of age-restricted items at purchase, and also followed an age verification delivery process requiring drivers to verify the recipient’s age.
In this case, its records showed the driver recorded a year of birth consistent with an adult and marked the recipient as visibly over 25-years-old, in accordance with its policies and industry practice.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said: “It’s a total disgrace how easy it still is for children to get dangerous weapons online. More than two years after Ronan Kanda was killed with a ninja sword bought by a teenager online, too many retailers still don’t have proper checks in place.
“It’s too easy to put in false birth dates, parcels are too often being dropped off at a doorstop with no questions asked. We cannot go on like this. We need much stronger checks – before you buy, before it’s delivered.”
The measures are set to be included as part of the Crime and Policing Bill which is expected to be introduced to Parliament by spring, with more proposals to come in the coming weeks.