Police force has no idea where licenced gun holders are after staff member wrote down the wrong information 9,000 people will be asked to confirm where they live and the guns they own South Yorkshire Police that their records had not been properly updated Expert: 'To see such a failing on the police side is shocking' A police force has had to write to thousands of firearms licence holders after admitting they are unsure where they are living and what guns they own. It has been revealed that a member of staff from South Yorkshire Police's firearms licensing team had been wrongly recording details or not recording them at all. Following the bungle South Yorkshire Police have been forced to write to 9,000 licence holders for them to confirm their details, and double check they have the correct records on file. Problems: A member of staff at South Yorkshire Police HQ (pictured) failed to record gun licence details properly so the force has had to write to 9,000 people for details The staff member was dismissed for misconduct in February for either 'inaccurately recording' updated information submitted by gun owners or not recording it at all. Bosses say it is not clear why the female member of staff failed to record the information and fear it will not now be possible to discover how many firearms licences she recorded incorrectly. Now a leading shooting organisation says the failure to update records 'could potentially undermine the duty to preserve public safety'. So far 4,500 of the licence owners have responded since receiving letters in May, but officers may have to visit the remainder in person if they fail to confirm their details. Chief Superintendent Rob Odell said the training given to firearms licensing officers was not the cause of the problem. Experts say the failure to properly record gun licences could undermine 'public safety' (file picture) He said: 'We are in a situation not of our making but we are trying to deal with it in as quick and pragmatic a way as possible. We are keen to assure our records and this is the best way to do it. Ch Supt Odell said it became apparent in October that records of changes such as licence holders moving house or changing the type of gun used were not being updated. Bill Harriman, director of firearms at the British Association for Shooting and Conservation, the UK's largest shooting organisation, said: 'South Yorkshire Police has an abysmal record when it comes to firearms licensing so this revelation comes as no surprise to me. When BASC members started receiving these letters, we suspected something was wrong with police record keeping. Firearms certificate holders must be law-abiding and meet very strict criteria for owning a firearm. To see such a failing on the police side is shocking. Neglecting to record critical information such as changes of address or changes of firearm could potentially undermine the duty to preserve public safety. A police spokesman said officials have written to all firearms licence holders in the county to 'ensure the accuracy of their records'. Police are confident they have accurate records of the people who are registered firearms licence holders. The integrity of police-held information needs to be assured and South Yorkshire Police acted as soon as possible to ensure this is the case. 'The firearms licence holding community are consistently co-operative with police enquiries and this has been demonstrated by the high-degree of co-operation so far,' he said. South Yorkshire Police has been scanning in all its paper firearms licences to make sure it has an electronic record ahead of its move to a new headquarters. Prospective gun owners have to apply to their local police force for a licence to ensure that convicted criminals are not allowed to own dangerous weapons.