Campaign Encourages Firearms Owners to “Sell With Certainty” and to Use a Federal Firearms Licensee When Selling a Firearm

The objective of the Safe Firearms Transfer campaign is to remind firearm owners that selling a firearm safely is a key part of an overall firearms safety strategy

Nov 17, 2016

WASHINGTON, Nov. 17, 2016 /PRNewswire/ — Every day, gun owners sell their firearms to individuals who reside in the same state.  These transfers take place at residences, at gun shows, and through classified and online ads.  But many of these unlicensed sellers do not have the ability to verify if their buyer is legally permitted to receive or possess a firearm.  This leaves these private sellers with no way to confirm whether or not the person to whom they are selling the firearm is prohibited from possessing it.  Indeed, many of these sellers may not even be aware of all the circumstances that prohibit someone from possessing a firearm.

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One way to do this is by selling your gun through a Federal Firearms Licensee (FFL). By doing so, there is a process to determine if the prospective buyer is prohibited from possessing or receiving a firearm.

Selling a firearm through an FFL offers several important advantages including:

  • Third party location for transfer of the firearm, which may provide additional safety
  • Assurance of a background check on the potential buyer
  • No need to ask potential buyers personal questions about their backgrounds
  • Community safety
  • Assistance to law enforcement in tracing the firearm to the buyer if it is ever recovered in connection with the commission of a crime

To encourage firearm owners to “Sell With Certainty,” the National Crime Prevention Council (NCPC) announced a new public service advertising (PSA) campaign, “Safe Firearm Transfer,” developed in partnership with the Ad Council, ROAR and funded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA).

“Selling your firearm safely is an important part of firearm safety.  One way to do this is by selling firearms through a licensed dealer or FFL. That way, there is a process to determine if the prospective buyer is prohibited from possessing or receiving a firearm,” said Ann M. Harkins, President and CEO, National Crime Prevention Council.

The radio, print, outdoor and online PSAs feature community voices calling on firearms owners to sell with certainty. The campaign ads were created pro bono by New York-based ad agency, ROAR. The PSAs end with the call to action: “Sell With Certainty” and direct firearms owners to ncpc.org to provide them with the best resources when selling a firearm.

“We are always proud to partner with the Ad Council on such important subjects as this,” said Leigh Baker, EVP Managing Director at ROAR.

The Safe Firearms Transfer campaign website features the tools and resources gun owners need in order to educate themselves about selling their gun in a secure way, through an FFL. The website also offers resources to help firearms owners understand the process of selling a gun.

The PSAs will be distributed to media outlets nationwide today and per the Ad Council’s model, the ads will air in advertising time and space entirely donated by the media and other partners.

About the Bureau of Justice Assistance
The Bureau of Justice Assistance’s (BJA) mission is to provide leadership and services in grant administration and criminal justice policy development to support state, local, and tribal justice strategies to achieve safer communities. BJA funds the Safe Firearms Storage public education campaign through grant number 2010–GP–BX–K006. The Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) is a component of the Office of Justice Programs (OJP), which also includes the Bureau of Justice Statistics, the National Institute of Justice, the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, the Office for Victims of Crime, and the Office of Sex Offender Sentencing, Monitoring, Apprehending, Registering, and Tracking.

About The National Crime Prevention Council
The National Crime Prevention Council, founded in 1982, is the nation’s nonprofit leader in crime prevention. For 35 years our recognizable icon McGruff the Crime Dog® has delivered easy to use crime prevention tips that empower citizens individually and collectively to keep themselves, their families, and their communities safe from crime. With a vast network of local and state law enforcement agencies, local community groups, foundations, and corporate partners, NCPC makes an impact on personal safety and crime every day. For more information on how to “Take A Bite Out of Crime®,” visit www.ncpc.org.  You can also like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, and find us on YouTube.

About the Ad Council
The Ad Council is a private, non–profit organization with a rich history of marshaling volunteer talent from the advertising and media industries to deliver critical messages to the American public. Having produced thousands of PSA campaigns addressing the most pressing social issues of the day, the Ad Council has effected, and continues to effect, tremendous positive change by raising awareness, inspiring action and saving lives. To learn more about the Ad Council and its campaigns, visit  adcouncil.org, like us on Facebook.com/adcouncil, follow us on Twitter @adcouncil or view our PSAs on YouTube.

About ROAR (www.roargroupe.com)

ROAR is a Publicis Groupe Solution where Strategy, Creative, UX, Media and Analytics shed silos to form a single team — with singular results. ROAR is headquartered in New York and has an additional presence in Atlanta. ROAR’s client roster includes JPMorgan Chase, Arby’s, Google and Massage Envy.

About Publicis Media

Publicis Media is one of the four solutions hubs of Publicis Groupe (Euronext Paris FR0000130577, CAC 40), alongside Publicis Communications, Publicis.Sapient and Publicis Healthcare. Led by Steve King, CEO, Publicis Media is comprised of five global brands, Starcom, Zenith, Mediavest | Spark, Optimedia | Blue 449 and Performics, powered by digital-first, data-driven global practices that together deliver client value and business transformation. Publicis Media is committed to helping its clients navigate the modern media landscape and is present in more than 100 countries with over 17,500 employees worldwide. Twitter: @PublicisMedia.

SOURCE National Crime Prevention Council

For further information: NCPC: DeeDee Dalton, 443-292-4565 or ddalton@ncpc.org; ROAR: Jessica Carruth, 470-225-3341, Jessica.carruth@publicismedia.com