A second gun buyback scheme will start tomorrow as police collect further firearms and parts that were banned under last year's new gun laws.
Police are urging people participating in the scheme to book an appointment early. While the amnesty lasts until August 1, the buyback period ends on May 1.
“To hand in any items as part of the buy-back, the first thing people need to do is make an appointment with their regional collection team by emailing buyback2021@police.govt.nz,” amnesty and buyback programme director Richard Wilson said.
He said booking an appointment would streamline the assessment and payment process.
“If people just walk into a station they will need to wait until the regional collection teams are in town before their items can be assessed and a price advised to enable compensation.”
People are asked to transport unloaded firearms in a secure bag or case. Photo ID and bank account details are required.
Police Minister Poto Williams announced the scheme earlier this month, allocating $15.5 million in compensation.
"This year’s buyback will look very different to the one in 2019 as there will be no large-scale collection events," Williams said.
"Police will be managing the smaller buyback through appointments at police stations."
An audit of the first gun buyback scheme found police managed it effectively and compensation was appropriate, but compliance was difficult to measure due to a lack of data.
Over 50,000 firearms were handed in during the amnesty.
On December 21, 2019, the firearms buyback ended after 56,250 firearms and 194,245 parts were collected since the initiative began in June 2019.
There were also 2717 firearms modified to make them lawful, police said in a statement. Approximately $102.2 million was paid in compensation.
Police have released the new price list for the firearms and items.
National’s police spokesperson, Simeon Brown, criticised the buyback — saying there should be more emphasis on cracking down on gangs.
The country-wide gun buyback amnesty ends on December 20.
"That’s because most law-abiding New Zealanders handed in their now-prohibited firearms, but gangs and criminals, those who pose the greatest risk to our safety, did not."
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