Submit Workplace can’t discover proof for over 1,000 Horizon scandal redress claimants

The Submit Workplace is pushing the federal government to provide the advantage of the doubt to greater than 1,000 former subpostmasters claiming compensation, the place it hasn’t but discovered proof that Horizon errors triggered shortfalls.

The claimants have utilized for a £75,000 fastened cost below the Submit Workplace’s Horizon Shortfall Scheme (HSS) – beforehand referred to as the Historic Shortfall Scheme – which was set as much as supply redress to victims of the Submit Workplace Horizon scandal.

MPs on the Enterprise and Commerce Choose Committee have beforehand referred to as for claimants throughout all compensation schemes to be given the advantage of the doubt to hurry up redress.

The HSS was established after the conclusion of a 2018/19 Excessive Courtroom group litigation order (GLO) that proved unexplained accounting shortfalls – for which subpostmasters have been blamed and compelled to repay – have been attributable to errors within the Horizon pc system utilized in branches. The scheme was designed for former subpostmasters who weren’t convicted of crimes however suffered losses from making funds to the Submit Workplace to cowl the shortfalls for which they have been wrongly blamed.

The £75,000 fastened cost was initially launched for members of the GLO, however was prolonged to HSS claimants in March final yr.

Since ITV’s dramatisation of the Submit Workplace scandal in January 2024, which widened understanding of the issues attributable to Horizon, many extra former subpostmasters have utilized for compensation.

However a supply informed Laptop Weekly that greater than 1,000 claimants are in limbo as a result of the Submit Workplace can not discover proof that Horizon errors triggered losses, including that the Submit Workplace is pushing for these folks to be given the advantage of the doubt.

The Submit Workplace informed Laptop Weekly: “We’re working intently and collaboratively with authorities relating to £75,000 HSS Fastened Sum Supply claims, the place, after an preliminary investigation, we now have been unable to find out eligible Horizon shortfalls at a department.”

The federal government stated it’s conscious of the problem and is working to resolve it. A spokesperson for the Division for Enterprise and Commerce stated: “Every case is handled individually, and we’re working to tell affected claimants on subsequent steps as quickly as attainable.”

MPs on the Enterprise and Commerce Choose Committee had beforehand beneficial adjustments to compensation schemes to provide claimants higher advantage of the doubt when making use of for redress, however these have been rejected.

Following the federal government’s rejection of this proposal, in addition to different ideas, committee chair Liam Byrne MP stated: “The brand new authorities has made extraordinarily necessary progress in accelerating redress cost to the victims of the most important miscarriage of justice in British authorized historical past. However too many are nonetheless ready too lengthy, and former subpostmasters are nonetheless dying earlier than they obtain justice. That’s fallacious.

“Individuals who have been, over years and years, disbelieved, bankrupt, criminalised, despatched to jail, had their lives utterly upended for wrongs that they didn’t commit, have skilled one thing akin to a second trial as they sought to clear their names and obtain redress,” he stated. “The federal government’s response to our suggestions is a begin. However we respectfully ask ministers to hear tougher to what the committee has beneficial, mirror once more on what we proposed and re-submit its response to the committee.”

Laptop Weekly first uncovered the scandal in 2009, revealing the tales of seven subpostmasters and the issues they suffered as a consequence of Horizon accounting software program, which led to essentially the most widespread miscarriage of justice in British historical past (see under timeline of Laptop Weekly articles in regards to the scandal since 2009).