Warning: Machetes, knives and swords can be bought online for as little as £1.17

Zombie-style machetes, samurai swords, and knives can be found on online retailers like eBay, Amazon, and Etsy, AND can reveal.

A wide range of knives, blades and swords were available for purchase on eBay and Amazon, while banned weapons including samurai swords and zombie-style knives and machetes were available for purchase on Etsy.

One listing on AliExpress, a retail website based in China, advertised a serrated-blade machete for just £1.17, available to order to the UK, with a disclaimer saying that buyers “must comply with applicable laws and regulations in their jurisdiction”.

The amnesty is part of a plan that will go into effect on August 26, with a complete ban on the use of zombie-style knives and machetes coming into effect on September 24.

Swords with a curved blade over 50 centimetres (20 inches) long were banned in 2008, while “zombie knives”, blades with a cutting edge and a serrated blade with words or images indicating they will be used “for violent purposes”, were banned in 2016.

Next month’s ban will expand the range of legally prohibited blades to include “zombie-style” knives and machetes, which have all the features of zombie knives but do not necessarily contain aggressive words or images.

AliExpress said customer safety is its “top priority,” adding that the company has “strict guidelines for sellers when selling knives” and will ensure “compliance with new knife regulations when they come into effect.”

On eBay, sellers were offering samurai swords and machetes for as little as £16, claiming they could ship the weapons “worldwide”, including to the UK.

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

They added: “We use a range of measures to prevent UK customers from purchasing illegal knives via eBay, including blocking buyers with UK addresses from purchasing these items.”

While eBay seeks to prohibit UK 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 transactions off-platform.

Listings on Amazon advertised weapons banned in the UK, including serrated-edged machetes and a 27-inch steel sword, while listings on Etsy advertised a number of samurai swords, machetes and a “combat cleaver”.

Etsy and Amazon have removed listings advertising offensive weapons from their sites after AND brought them to the attention of the company.

An Amazon spokesperson said the company takes “very seriously its responsibility to sell all products intended for older adults – including those with blades.”

“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 implemented measures to prevent products from being shipped to countries where they are banned.

John Howey, senior associate at JFH Law, said: AND“The biggest problem with international websites is enforcement.

“The general rule is that acts committed outside a jurisdiction are outside the scope of English criminal law unless there is a statute to the contrary.

“If something is legal in the host country, that country will not extradite anyone to stand trial.”

Umar Zeb, Senior Partner at JD Spicer Zeb Solicitors, said AND:“There have been several legislative attempts to restrict access to knives and weapons via international websites.

“For example, supplying a bladed product to a residential premises is an offence under section 38 of the Offensive Weapons Act 2019 and section 39 prohibits the supply of bladed products to anyone under 18 years of age.

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

“However, as with many crimes, the internet has made it much easier to obtain zombie knives and other weapons. The problem is that despite all that has been done to curb online gun sales, many of them will still be available via the dark web.”

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

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

He said AND that the requirement to display violent text or images “was effectively used as a loophole through which many of the exact same weapons could be stored and sold by simply removing the violent images and words.”

He added: “The knife crime epidemic in the UK is an extreme problem. Victims are being targeted by people of all backgrounds and genders, not just teenage boys.

“Having worked on cases involving 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 extend the definition of ‘zombie knife’ to close a loophole being exploited by individuals who continue to possess and manufacture similarly dangerous knives without the writing or imagery associated with violence.”

What is a “zombie style knife and machete”?

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

• (i) straight cutting edge;
• (ii) a pointed end; and
• (iii) a blade more than eight inches long (the length of the blade is measured in a straight line from the top of the handle to the tip of the blade).

The weapon will also have one or more of the following features:

• (a) a serrated cutting edge (other than a serrated cutting edge up to two inches long at the handle);
• (b) more than one hole in the blade;
• (c) spikes;
• (d) more than two sharp points on the blade, except (1) a sharp point whose angle between the edges forming the point is at least 90 degrees (in the case of a curved edge, the angle shall be measured with respect to the tangent to the curve); or (2) a sharp point on the cutting edge of the blade near the handle.

The government has appealed to anyone who owns zombie-style knives or machetes to report them to police between August 26 and September 23.

People who return firearms may be entitled to compensation if they provide “acceptable evidence of the item’s value,” such as a sales receipt.

The standard compensation amount for any surrendered firearm will be £10, while claims for items worth over £10 must include “acceptable evidence of the item’s value”, such as a receipt.

Compensation will only be paid to those who return weapons with a total value exceeding £30.

Knife crime has increased by 4 per cent, with 50,510 such crimes recorded in the year ending March 2024 compared to the year ending March 2023.

While this number is 3% lower than the pre-pandemic level, it is almost twice as high as the number of crimes (27,401) recorded in 2015.

AliExpress said: “The safety of our customers is our top priority. We have strict guidelines for sellers when selling knives.

“We respect and strive to comply with all applicable rules and regulations in the markets in which we operate, including any relevant pending regulations as soon as they come into effect. AliExpress will comply with the new knife regulations as soon as they come into effect.”

An Amazon spokesperson said: “We take our responsibility for selling all products aimed at older people – including those with blades – very seriously.

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

“We have implemented preventive measures to prevent certain products from being shipped to customers in countries where they are banned.

“Both highlighted blade products are not eligible for shipping to UK customers.”

AND contacted Etsy for comment.