Preparedness for when

GreyQueen

I have a vague recollection that pepper spray is illegal in the UK?

COOLTRIKERCHICK

Yes I thought that too GQ

I personally think there is more chance of muggings.. So I think as been spoken about before, be aware of your surroundings, instead of looking for emergency exits, if you were in a shop, and there was a terrorist attack etc, look for shops/ offices etc that are open.. Occupied houses with lights on you could run to and knock their door, you can buy those personal alarms that when I was issued with one, for a job I was in many moons ago, they told me to activate it near their head/ ear of possible, to give you a few seconds to run, or boot them in the wotsits. I am sure there are self defence or martial arts classes, around the country that even learning the basics would be good.... Me I have a cattle prod.that we got as a standby if we get a very stubborn/ naughty pig.. Especially as we got our own boar.. Thankfully never used it..

Edit..... Just to make people aware.. Tazers are only ment for farmers/ smallholders .and notbment for general public..

mardatha

Minus 7 here this morning and I'm doing another online shop. That way I don't need to poke my wee snout outside at all. Any man who feels up to groping wimmen in that cold probably deserves a medal for stamina & endurance.

GreyQueen

My brother and I once had a rather interesting experience shopping in a market town about 30 miles from our hometown.

We were walking in the precinct, almost shoulder to shoulder, when a woman made a point of diving between us and immediately turning around to face us. She just stood and stared. We each stepped outside of her and walked around without saying anything, since it was quite obvious she wasn't mentally well.

This continued for several minutes. If we went into a shop, she stayed outside, and picked us on on our exit. Finally, I got tired of it. We went into a Body Shop and I went up to a lady and asked if she worked there?

She did, she was the manager. I explained about the lady and asked if we could leave by her back door; she'd seen the woman waiting outside for us and assumed we were together. She readily agreed and brother and I exited via the rear door from the stock-room onto a service lane parallel to the shopping street, and scampered back to the carpark and left. Via the media, I subsequently learned that this unfortunately lady had caused a great deal of trouble in that town centre, including an assault, before she was sectioned.

The point of this anecdote is that it is a rare shop which doesn't have a rear exit, and that it usually onto another street or a service lane wide enough to admit a vehicle. If you are in a pickle, exiting a neighbourhood via a shop may well be an option to consider.

moneyistooshorttomention

GreyQueen wrote: »

I have a vague recollection that pepper spray is illegal in the UK?

Reading the reviews of the one I like the look of on Amazon, this came up as to whether they are legal. The answers given there were that it is legal. I would think the fact its easily possible to buy them from Amazon here is something that wouldn't happen if they weren't legal.

They are legal in Germany - where sales of them have shot up in recent weeks - so that's another reason I think they must be legal here.

What would be the point of them not being too? As in - one can readily buy spray paint, spray deodorant, etc, etc? It would be pointless to make these illegal - when one can readily buy something like that instead.

One of the things I noticed about those sprays is that its possible to buy an equivalent that just sprays the culprit red visibly (ie for identification) and the pepper spray that was first I spotted there also sprays them with an identifier (think it was summat called "UV spray").

COOLTRIKERCHICK

This is a good guide ..

What I can make out, actual pepper sprays are ilegal... BUT, there are pepper 'like' sprays..you can use

Best to read the article and made your own minds up..

When I was a young girl.. In our group of friends we always used to say carry a bottle of spray prefume in your pocket or bag.. As this is the type of thing you would normally carry with you..

Even though those sprays might not be ilegal, is there a grey area so to speak, that you are carrying one for the sole purpose of using it to temp hurt/ blind/ assault someone.???? Don't forget we are in a country where even the attackers / robbers etc can put in a claim against their victims
http://www.ukpreppersguide.co.uk/uk-legal-pepper-spray-alternative-for-women/

greenbee

Anything sprayed in the face, or even a strong torch beam shone in the eyes (smartphone camera flash/torch is good) will disorientate someone enough to allow you to get away (assuming you have an escape route planned/can outrun them). However, it does need to be accessible and available for instant reaction - so don't keep it in your handbag - it can take me minutes to find something in mine, despite it being fairly small!

GreyQueen

When I was a young art student, we used to carry uncapped aerosol cans of a product called 'spray fix' which is an adhesive which will be familiar to artists and perhaps to crafters. It was something we used and carried around with us most days anyway, we just carried an uncapped can in a pocket rather than capped in a bag, for potential self-defence.

One of my year group accidentally sprayed herself in the eyes with this product (trying to clear a blocked nozzle on a can) and required treatment at A& E.

There are very many widely-available products which are noxious if sprayed in the face; many toiletries, insect sprays, car paint, furniture polish, the list is near-endless. The difficulty could be justifying why you were carrying wasp spray on the street in the middle of winter.

[Deleted User]

moneyistooshorttomention wrote: »

BEDSIT BOB

Any thoughts on pepper sprays?

So - I'm wondering about pepper sprays.....

How do you rate them?

GreyQueen wrote: »

I have a vague recollection that pepper spray is illegal in the UK?

GQ is correct, they are, for all intents, illegal in the UK.

Specifically, Pepper Sprays (along with CS sprays) are covered by Section 5 of the Firearms Act, along with machine guns, full-bore self-loading rifles, and pistols.

Possession requires an authorisation, issued by the Secretary of State.

[Deleted User]

GreyQueen wrote: »

The difficulty could be justifying why you were carrying wasp spray on the street in the middle of winter.

Indeed, you would have to justify carrying any kind of aerosol, and (just like the carrying of fixed blade knives, and folding knives with blades exceeding 76mm) the burden of establishing good reason falls on the carrier, not on the prosecution.