Error on 4473

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MaterDei

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Hi,

I received a certified letter from Academy that says that the 4473 I filled out a few months ago has an error. Not sure what this means but it says that the 'Certification date was corrected and needs initials'.

It says that the 4473 must be completely filled out for the lawful transfer of a firearm to a non-licensee.

They want me to return to the store to complete the form.

Sounds to me like the clerk made an error as the 'certification date' is not one of the fields that the buyer fills out.

I don't particularly like having to fill out the form in the first place and I'm tempted to just ignore the letter. Other than doing Academy a favor, I suppose, is there any reason why I should waste my time doing this?

Thanks
 
To avoid a visit from the ATF? It's not as if not initialing will somehow prevent them from being able to track this gun to you. None of us enjoy filling it out but gun dealers are human and by failing to do so you expose them to trouble, if not yourself. I don't know the law on this but I wouldn't be surprised if both you and the dealer could technically be harassed by the ATF, if not worse.

My LGS made a similar mistake once. I swung by at my earliest convenience, made the correction and that was it.

Hell, you could probably get a free box of ammo or something out of it if you really wanted to.
 
IANAL but...if the purchaser fills out the 4473, especially fully and correctly...assuming he's not a prohibited person the FFL should've denied under law in the first place, what would the ATF come to HIS door for?

Basically, sounds like the store employee dun goofed. You can be nice and go in and initial it like they asked...

Or if that's inconvenient, you can ask them to mail a copy to you, initial the copy and mail it back (This happened once with my fiancee through a local dealer, though we ended up just dropping it off since we frequent the shop)

Or if you just don't feel like dealing with it, you can ignore it. The 4473 is something the dealer has to get done to legally transfer the firearm TO a non-licensee, not something a non-licensee has to do to RECEIVE the firearm from an FFL. As long as you aren't a prohibited person, and didn't lie on the form as it is filled out, you're good.



That all said? I'd opt for option 1 or 2 just to make life easy for everyone.
 
I don't particularly like having to fill out the form in the first place and I'm tempted to just ignore the letter. Other than doing Academy a favor, I suppose, is there any reason why I should waste my time doing this?
Click to expand...

I guess it depends on how much you like buying guns there? Enough little mistakes they can conceivably loose their FFL.
 
MaterDei Hi,

I received a certified letter from Academy that says that the 4473 I filled out a few months ago has an error. Not sure what this means but it says that the 'Certification date was corrected and needs initials'.

It says that the 4473 must be completely filled out for the lawful transfer of a firearm to a non-licensee.

They want me to return to the store to complete the form.

Sounds to me like the clerk made an error as the 'certification date' is not one of the fields that the buyer fills out.
Click to expand...
The "Certification date" is required to be completed by the buyer.......it's right there next to your name at the top of page 2.

I don't particularly like having to fill out the form in the first place and I'm tempted to just ignore the letter. Other than doing Academy a favor, I suppose, is there any reason why I should waste my time doing this?
Click to expand...
Reasons?
It might help someone keep his job.
It might mean the difference between that employee being charged with a crime or not.
It might mean one less gun store to shop.
It also means the firearm was not lawfully transferred to you.

But go ahead and ignore the letter.
 
IANAL but...if the purchaser fills out the 4473, especially fully and correctly...assuming he's not a prohibited person the FFL should've denied under law in the first place, what would the ATF come to HIS door for?
Click to expand...

I've heard plenty of stories of the ATF going to or after the buyer for mistakes that were not his. Off the top of my head I can think of the Atkins accelerator and another involving a gun with a receiver that had the naughty hole drilled.
 
If it was me i'd stop by the store and initial it,i'd hate to see somebody possibly get in trouble and lose their job over a mistake. Plus the atf is a pain in the butt to deal with and i'd rather not have to talk to those people.
 
Its a done deal, live life and move on.... it wasn't required by our forefathers was it?
 
A-FIXER Its a done deal, live life and move on.... it wasn't required by our forefathers was it?
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It's not a "done deal" and someones forefathers passed the Gun Control Act of 1968 that required a Forn 4473 when buying a firearm from a licensed dealer.
 
I purchased a handgun from a LGS a few years back. About a half hour later they called and said the clerk had made a mistake on the form and would I come back. When I finished what I was doing I went back and took care of the issue, no harm, no foul. As stated, people make mistakes.
 
That happened to me once. There was some mistake on the form so I just swung by the store and corrected it (it was no big deal). Why risk it? Just get everything squared away. It protects you and the store. There's really no reason not to just make sure everything is good to go.
 
I would stop in and correct it! The last thing I would want to do is cause trouble for myself or for a fellow 2nd Amendment supporter.
 
Man, as someone speaking with experience, just do it. They made a mistake. They got audited, probably internally but quite possibly by the ATF. They do everything they can to stay in compliance and offer you the best service they can. Those guys behind the counter are under a lot of pressure to be absolutely perfect every time because, frankly, the ATF doesnt care. Give them the common courtesy and go in and fix it for them. Believe me they will appreciate it. And it is the decent thing to do. Please do not ignore it.
 
I'd fill it out and be done with it. What you don't want is ANY trouble related to guns. To much expensive stuff can go wrong too fast.
 
I don't have the source readily at hand, but I'm pretty sure you don't ever "correct" the original 4473. You are supposed to attach a corrected copy to it, and the FFL keeps both papers together in their files.

Hopefully, an FFL will chime in with confirmation/rebuttal.
 
A-FIXER said:
Its a done deal, live life and move on.... it wasn't required by our forefathers was it?
Click to expand...
The store didn't make the law. They are on OUR side. They are good guys, why hurt them? If they made a mistake, so what? You have made mistakes, I have made mistakes, everyone makes mistakes.

Go fill it out, people in the gun culture need to have each others backs
 
Say you purchased and firearm from someone, now the sale is done and they call you back and say they should have gathered more info from you because a bill of sale wasn't enough are you going to go back and give them more of what they ask. I am not a criminal nor wisecrack of sorts just like most things all sales are final.
 
A A-hole or not character is not a factor of a firearm sale once ownership transfered its done have you ever tried to return Ammo or a firearm back to a box store?
 
A-FIXER said:
A A-hole or not character is not a factor of a firearm sale once ownership transfered its done have you ever tried to return Ammo or a firearm back to a box store?
Click to expand...
You cant be serious. Its about decency. Its about helping out people that are on your side. Its not about you vs the shop. Cmon man!! There is the potential for that shop to lose their license to sell firearms and for the guy that released the gun to go to prison. Yes it is his fault. But does that matter? Do you have one decent bone in your body?


This is just plain ridiculous.
 
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