By Nick Player - September 2025

The fact is, in the UK, anyone can carry a pair of handcuffs. There is no law or regulation preventing an ordinary citizen from owning mechanical restraints and keeping them in a bag or on their person. You do not need a licence or specific permission to possess them.

However, the question isn't about possession; it's about use. The moment you apply handcuffs to another person, you cross a critical legal threshold. This act is defined as a use of force, and without the right legal justification, it constitutes a criminal act of assault. For professionals in the security sector, understanding the profound responsibility of this action is crucial.

The Justification for Use: When and Why Restraints are Necessary

Security and law enforcement professionals don't carry handcuffs for convenience; they carry them as a tool of last resort to manage high-risk, dangerous, or volatile situations. The core reasons for applying mechanical restraints are strictly limited and must always be recorded and justified:

• Protect Others: To protect the public, colleagues, or property from immediate harm or violence during an escalating incident or lawful arrest.
• Prevent Self-Injury: To stop an individual who is a danger to themselves from causing self-harm.
• Prevent Escape: To ensure a subject who has been lawfully arrested (under powers such as a Citizen's Arrest, governed by PACE s.24A) does not escape before police arrival.
• Maintain Control: To reduce risk and maintain control during high-stress situations until the subject can be safely handed over to the police.

Crucially, restraints must never be used for punishment, intimidation, or simple convenience. Your legal right to act is based on the principles of necessity and proportionality as defined under the Criminal Law Act 1967 (Section 3) and Common Law (Self Defence).

The Risk Factor: Why Training is Non-Negotiable

The lawful use of force is complex, particularly for security personnel who operate without the extended powers of the police. While the SIA does not endorse or prohibit the carriage of handcuffs, it stresses that operatives have no special legal powers.

This means that every application of a restraint must stand up to scrutiny against the law, including the Human Rights Act 1998 (specifically the right to life, freedom from torture/inhuman treatment, and the right to liberty).

Without the correct, accredited training, professionals face severe risks:

• Criminal Liability: Misuse of force, including the improper application or excessive tightening of cuffs, can lead to charges of common assault or grievous bodily harm.
• Civil Liability: Improper use or subsequent injury to the subject can lead to costly civil litigation against you and your employer.
• Medical Complications: Poor technique risks causing serious injury, such as positional asphyxia (a life-threatening inability to breathe due to body position), nerve compression, or circulatory damage.

Expert training teaches staff to apply the PLAN criteria (Proportionate, Legal, Accountable, Necessary) and conduct Dynamic Risk Assessments (DRA) to ensure their actions are justifiable in real-time. It covers the medical risks, the proper nomenclature and use of double-locking mechanisms, and the vital post-incident procedures that complete the legal justification.

Training for Compliance and Confidence

To legally justify the use of handcuffs and to protect the subject from harm, a security operative must receive certified instruction.

At Close Protection Academy, we provide the highest standard of instruction with the Highfield Level 3 Award in the Safe Use of Mechanical Restraints (Handcuffs) (RQF).

This one-day qualification ensures that when you choose to carry cuffs—a decision that should be sanctioned by your employer—you are fully equipped with the knowledge to use them lawfully, safely, and proportionately, transforming the restraint from a liability into a professionally managed tool for safety.