The following is a video transcript.

I want to speak to you today about an “Oops, I’ve lost my firearm,” or “Oops, I’ve misplaced it” scenario.

Now, I get this call all the time from clients and members and they are obviously full of panic and they don’t know what to do. This is generally my advice, but before you do any of this, call me first:

Don’t Wait

Generally, one of the first things we do is call the police to report a firearm is stolen. It is important that you do this very quickly because the gun will then be entered into local, state, and national databases—listing that the firearm is stolen—so if the gun is later used in a crime or some other incident, it will not be traced directly back to you. The database will show that the gun was either stolen or missing and that will provide a bit of an alibi for you should somebody think that you were involved with that incident.

When you report the firearm as being stolen or missing, you are going to need to have the color of the firearm, the make and model, and the serial number.

In Colorado, there is no requirement to register your firearm in a database. There is really no place to register firearms here, so there is no state database where that information would be pulled from. It is up to you to retain the proper documentation at home or at work to report this at a later date.

Maintaining Information About Your Firearm

Usually, the Bill of Sale would have the information for proper documentation, and sometimes there is information on the case or the box that the firearm came in. Make sure you retain all of that.

If it is not practical for you to do that, take pictures of it, and keep those pictures in a safe place—either in a safe or in a safe deposit box. At the very least, take a picture of the Bill of Sale on your phone so that you have a place where you can access it and track it down later on if you need it.

If the firearm is recovered, you are also going to need to prove that you are the rightful owner of that firearm and proof of purchase is going to be critical in that situation.

Now, if you have any questions about this or anything else, feel free to call U.S. LawShield. I am always happy to talk to U.S. LawShield members.