Machetes, knives and swords on sale online from just £1.17

Machetes, samurai swords and zombie-style knives have been listed on retail sites such as eBay, Amazon and Etsy, I can reveal.

A wide range of knives, blades and swords are listed on eBay, Amazon, while Etsy advertises banned weapons including samurai swords and zombie-style knives and machetes.

An ad on AliExpress, a China-based retail site, advertised a serrated machete for just £1.17, available to order in the UK, with a disclaimer stating that the buyer “must comply with the laws and regulations of your jurisdiction.”

The move comes as an amnesty for the return of zombie-style knives and machetes begins on August 26, ahead of a total ban on September 24.

Swords with a curved blade longer than 50 centimeters were banned in 2008, while “zombie knives,” defined as blades with a sharp edge and a serrated edge bearing words or images indicating they will be used “for the purpose of violence,” were banned in 2016.

Next month's ban will expand the range of blades banned by law to include “zombie-style” knives and machetes, which have all the characteristics of zombie knives but do not necessarily feature violent words or images.

AliExpress said customer safety was its “top priority”, adding that the company had “strict guidelines for merchants regarding the sale of knives” and would ensure it was “compliant with the new knife legislation when it comes into force”.

Listings on eBay offered samurai swords and machetes for just £16, with sellers claiming they were able to ship the weapons “worldwide”, including to the UK.

An eBay spokesperson said: I that the company “takes the safety of its customers very seriously.”

They added: “We use a variety of measures to prevent UK-based customers from purchasing illegal knives through eBay, including preventing buyers with a UK address from purchasing these items.”

As eBay seeks to ban UK-based customers from purchasing offensive weapons through its website, the company cannot prevent customers from contacting sellers willing to ship offensive weapons to the UK to arrange a transaction outside the platform.

Listings on Amazon appeared to advertise weapons banned in the UK, including serrated machetes and a 27-inch steel sword, while several samurai swords, machetes and a “combat cleaver” were advertised on Etsy.

Etsy and Amazon have removed listings advertising offensive weapons from their websites after I brought them to the company's attention.

An Amazon spokesperson said the company takes its “responsibility regarding the sale of all age-restricted items, including bladed products, very seriously.”

“We require that all products offered in our store comply with applicable laws, regulations and Amazon policies,” the spokesperson said, adding that the company has measures in place to prevent products from being shipped to countries where they are banned.

John Howey, senior attorney at JFH Law, said: I:“The major problem with international websites is law enforcement.

“The general rule is that acts committed outside the jurisdiction are not subject to English criminal law, unless a statute provides otherwise.

“If something is legal in the host country, that country will not extradite anyone to be tried here.”

Umar Zeb, senior partner at JD Spicer Zeb Solicitors, said: I“There have been several legislative attempts to try to reduce access to knives and weapons through international websites.

“For example, it is an offence under section 38 of the Offensive Weapons Act 2019 for a sharp product to be delivered to a residential premises, and section 39 prohibits the delivery of sharp products to persons under 18 years of age.

“The new Online Safety Act of 2023 also imposes a legal obligation on many technology companies such as Google to prevent illegal activities, including the sale of weapons.

“However, as with many crimes, the internet makes it much easier to acquire zombie knives and other weapons. The problem is that despite all efforts to limit the sale of weapons online, many weapons will remain accessible via the dark web.”

Samurai swords with a curved blade longer than 50 centimetres were banned in the UK in 2008, making it illegal to sell, rent, lend or own the weapon privately. Antique swords, those made in Japan before 1954 and those forged using traditional methods are exempt from the ban.

While zombie knives were legally banned in 2016, Mr Zeb said the upcoming ban will expand the range of prohibited weapons to include “zombie-style” knives and machetes that do not feature violent images or words.

He said I that the requirement for violent text or images “has effectively been used as a loophole to keep and sell many of the same guns by simply removing the images and words relating to violence.”

He added: “The knife crime epidemic in the UK is an extreme problem. Victims come from all backgrounds and genders, not just teenagers.

“Having worked on cases of zombie knife violence and knowing clients and families who have themselves been victims of zombie knife attacks, including local teenagers who have died, we are delighted to see the Government broaden the definition of ‘zombie knife’ to close the loophole exploited by those who continue to own and manufacture similar dangerous knives without any markings or imagery relating to violence.”

What is a “zombie style knife and machete”?

The “zombie-style knives and machetes” that will be banned next month are bladed items with:

• (i) a smooth cutting edge;
• (ii) a sharp, pointed end; and
• (iii) a blade more than eight inches in length (the blade length being the straight line distance from the top of the handle to the tip of the blade).

Weapons will also have one or more of the following characteristics:

• (a) a serrated cutting edge (other than a serrated cutting edge measuring up to two inches from the side of the handle);
• (b) more than one hole in the blade;
• (c) tips;
• (d) more than two sharp points on the blade, other than (1) a sharp point where the angle between the edges that create the point is an angle of at least 90 degrees (where there is a curved edge, the angle will be measured by reference to the tangent of the curve); or (2) a sharp point on the cutting edge of the blade near the handle.

The government has called on anyone with a zombie-style knife or machete to hand it in to police between August 26 and September 23.

People who surrender guns may be eligible for compensation if they can provide “acceptable proof of the value of the item,” such as a purchase receipt.

The standard amount of compensation for each returned weapon will be £10, while claims for items worth more than £10 must include “acceptable proof of the value of the item”, such as a purchase receipt.

Compensation will only be awarded to those who hand over weapons with a total value of more than £30.

Knife crime increased by 4%, with 50,510 offences recorded in the year to March 2024 compared with the year to March 2023.

Although this figure is 3% lower than pre-pandemic levels, it is almost twice as high as the number of offences (27,401) recorded in 2015.

AliExpress said: “The safety of our customers is our top priority. We have strict guidelines for merchants regarding the sale of knives.

“We respect and strive to comply with all applicable rules and regulations in the markets in which we operate, including any pending relevant regulations once they come into force. AliExpress will comply with the new knife legislation when it comes into force.”

An Amazon spokesperson said: “We take our responsibility for selling all age-restricted items, including bladed products, very seriously.

“We require that all products offered in our store comply with applicable laws, regulations, and Amazon policies.

“We have also put in place proactive measures to prevent certain products from being shipped to customers in different countries where they are prohibited.

“The two highlighted blade products cannot be shipped to customers in the UK.”

I contacted Etsy for comment.