Machetes, samurai swords and zombie knives were listed on retail websites such as eBay, Amazon and Etsy, I can betray.

eBay and Amazon offer a wide range of knives, blades and swords, while Etsy touts banned weapons, including samurai swords and zombie-style knives and machetes.

A listing on AliExpress, a retail website based in China, advertised a serrated machete for just £1.17 that could be ordered to the UK, while also advertising a disclaimer that said the buyer must “comply with applicable laws and regulations in their jurisdiction”.

This comes as an amnesty for the surrender of zombie-style knives and machetes comes into force on August 26, before a full ban comes into force on September 24.

Swords with a curved blade longer than 50 centimeters were banned in 2008, and “zombie knives” – defined as blades with a cutting edge and serrated edge with words or images indicating that they are used “for violent purposes” – were banned in 2016.

Next month’s ban will expand the range of blades prohibited by law to include “zombie-style” knives and machetes, which have all the characteristics of zombie knives but do not necessarily contain violent words or imagery.

AliExpress said customer safety is its “top priority,” adding that it has “strict policies for merchants regarding the sale of knives” and will ensure it “complies with new legislation on knives once it comes into force.”

Samurai swords and machetes were offered for sale on eBay for as little as £16, with sellers claiming they could ship the weapons “worldwide,” including to the UK.

An eBay spokesman said I that the company “takes the safety of our customers very seriously.”

They added: “We take a number of measures to prevent UK-based customers from purchasing illegal knives on eBay. This includes refusing to allow buyers with UK addresses to purchase these items.”

While eBay wants to ban UK-based customers from purchasing assault weapons through the site, the company cannot prevent customers from contacting sellers willing to ship assault weapons to the UK to arrange a transaction outside of the platform.

On Amazon, listings appeared to promote weapons banned in the UK, including serrated machetes and a 27-inch steel sword, while on Etsy, several samurai swords, machetes and a “battle axe” were offered.

Etsy and Amazon removed ads for assault weapons from their website after I has drawn the company’s attention to this.

An Amazon spokesperson said the company takes its “responsibilities related to the sale of all age-restricted items – including products containing blades – extremely seriously.”

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

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

“The general rule is that acts committed outside the jurisdiction of the courts are outside the scope of English criminal law, unless a statute provides otherwise.

“If something is legal in the host country, that country will not extradite someone who is on trial here.”

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

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

“The new Online Safety Act 2023 also legally obliges many technology companies like Google to prevent illegal activities, including the sale of weapons.

“However, as with many crimes, it is much easier to acquire zombie knives and other weapons over the internet. The problem is that despite all the measures taken to restrict online gun sales, many weapons will continue to be accessible via the dark web.”

Samurai swords with a curved blade over 50 centimetres long were banned in the UK in 2008. Selling, renting, lending or privately owning the weapon is now illegal. Antique swords, those made in Japan before 1954 and those forged using traditional methods are exempt from the ban.

Although zombie knives were already banned by law in 2016, Mr Zeb said the upcoming ban would broaden the range of prohibited weapons to include “zombie-style” knives and machetes that do not contain violent imagery and words.

He told I that the requirement for violent text or images “was effectively used as a loophole through which many of the exact same weapons could be kept and sold simply by removing images and words related to violence.”

He added: “The knife crime epidemic in the UK is an extreme problem. The victims come from all walks of life and are not of one gender, they are not just teenage boys.”

“We have worked on cases involving violence caused by zombie knives and we know clients and families who have been victims of zombie knife attacks themselves, including local youth who have lost their lives. So we are pleased that the Government is broadening the definition of ‘zombie knife’ to close the loophole in the law exploited by those who continue to possess and manufacture similar dangerous knives without any association with violence in text or images.”

What is a “zombie style knife and machete”?

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

• (i) a smooth cutting edge;
• (ii) a sharp pointed end; and
• (iii) a blade with a length exceeding 20 cm (the length of the blade being the straight-line distance from the top of the handle to the tip of the blade).

The weapons also have one or more of the following features:

• (a) a serrated edge (excluding a serrated edge up to two inches adjacent to the handle);
• b) more than one hole in the blade;
• c) spines;
• (d) more than two sharp points in the blade, except for (1) a sharp point where the angle between the edges forming the point is at least 90 degrees (in the case of curved edges, the angle is measured by the tangent of the curvature); or (2) a sharp point on the cutting edge of the blade near the handle.

The government has called on anyone who owns a zombie-style knife or machete to hand it in to police between August 26 and September 23.

Anyone who surrenders weapons may be entitled to compensation if they can provide “acceptable evidence of the value of the item,” such as a purchase receipt.

The standard compensation amount for each weapon surrendered is £10, however claims for items valued over £10 must be accompanied by “acceptable proof of the value of the item”, such as a receipt.

Compensation will only be paid to those who surrender weapons with a total value of over £30.

The number of crimes committed with knives increased by 4 percent. In the year to March 2024, 50,510 crimes were recorded compared to the year to March 2023.

Although this figure is three percent lower than pre-pandemic levels, it is almost twice the number of crimes registered in 2015 (27,401).

AliExpress said: “The safety of our customers is our top priority. We have strict policies for merchants regarding the sale of knives.

“We respect and strive to comply with all applicable rules and regulations of the markets in which we operate, including any relevant pending regulations once they come into force. AliExpress will comply with the new legislation on knives once it comes into force.”

An Amazon spokesperson said: “We take our responsibilities related to the sale of all age-restricted items – including products containing blades – extremely seriously.

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

“And we have taken proactive measures to prevent certain products from being delivered to customers in various countries where they are banned.

“The two blade products highlighted cannot be shipped to customers in the UK.”

I has asked Etsy for comment.