Subpostmasters wrongly convicted of financial crimes could still be waiting for full compensation settlements well into 2026, according to a Public Accounts Committee (PAC) report.
The committee of MPs also criticised the government for its lack of action in contacting former subpostmasters who have not responded to invitations to apply for compensation.
The report comes days after the government’s self-congratulatory announcement that 7,000 victims of the Post Office Horizon scandal have received over £1bn in compensation. The government said this shows “progress”, but the figure hides a continued struggle for many.
The PAC accused the government of taking “insufficient action to ensure that all entitled to compensation from the scandal have applied for it”.
The Post Office scandal, which was first exposed by Computer Weekly in 2009, saw thousands of subpostmasters blamed and punished for unexplained accounting shortfalls that were eventually proven to be caused by computer errors. There are now five different compensation schemes related to the scandal, including one specifically for subpostmasters who used the Capture system, which pre-dated Horizon.
Another year of struggle
In its latest report, the PAC said that in the Overturned Convictions Scheme (OSS), of which the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) took control from the Post Office this month, 25 of the 111 eligible individuals have not yet submitted a claim.
“It is possible that claims may not be received for the remaining 25 eligible individuals until into 2026 due to the complexity of their cases,” said the PAC report.
My case still stands in the High Court, and … if I had applied to the schemes, they would say the court found me guilty of a breach of contract [so] they’re not going to pay me anything substantial or fair or reasonable Lee Castleton, former subpostmaster
The 25 victims have received an interim payment of £200,000, with a further £250,000 payment to be made on receipt of a full claim.
There is a three-month transition period from the Post Office to the DBT to transfer the relevant data and handling of claims.
The PAC committee recommended: “The department should outline how it plans to handle remaining cases under the OSS, including how claims will be handled differently following the transition of the scheme from the Post Office to the department.”
The PAC also revealed that only one in five of 18,500 letters alerting subpostmasters to their eligibility to apply through the largest compensation scheme, known as the Historic Shortfalls Scheme (HSS), have been responded to.
“By 31 March 2025, approximately 18,500 letters had been sent by the Post Office, with a response rate of 21%,” the report said. Another 5,000 letters are expected to be sent this year.
It said the government has no plans to “track down” victims who might not even be aware of what they are entitled to.
“The 18,500 people written to by March 2025, as part of this scheme, does not represent all those affected, and the government has no plans for following up with people who are, or may be, eligible to claim under the schemes but who have not yet applied,” added the PAC.
Uncertainty and complexity
For the Horizon Convictions Redress Scheme (HCRS), which was set up after the government introduced legislation to overturn hundreds of wrongful convictions, the DBT said it has issued letters to approximately 800 people.
By 31 March 2025, 339 individuals had accepted a fixed and final sum of £600,000, while others in the scheme have yet to decide whether to accept the fixed sum or go through the detailed assessment process.
Meanwhile, although not covered in the PAC report, there remain 138 of 454 claimants in the Group Litigation Order (GLO) who are awaiting their claims to be settled.
“They’re not geared for this as it’s not the sort of thing these departments should be doing,” he said. “It’s bogged down in bureaucracy the whole time. That’s the truth of the matter, and the only people who are in denial about it are the department,” he added.
He called for the PAC to look at the amount of money spent by the government on lawyers.
Lee Castleton, who, along with Bates, was one of the first group of subpostmasters to contact Computer Weekly in 2008, was made bankrupt by the Post Office after he refused to cover unexplained shortfalls, which are now known to have been caused by computer errors.
“Joining a scheme would be like putting the horse before the cart, really. My case still stands in the High Court, and I just know if I had applied to the schemes, they would constantly say that the court found me guilty of a breach of contract and therefore, they’re not going to pay me anything substantial or fair or reasonable.”
It is entirely unacceptable that those affected by this scandal, some of whom have had to go through the courts to clear their names, are being forced to relitigate their cases a second time Geoffrey Clifton-Brown, PAC
Castleton, who was recently awarded an OBE, is the first individual to launch a legal action, and it is the first time an action has been launched against Fujitsu for its core role in the scandal. He is also claiming compensation, alleging the High Court judgment against him was obtained by fraud.
Deeply dissatisfactory
MP Geoffrey Clifton-Brown, who chairs the PAC, said its members would have hoped to “have found the government laser-focused” on making sure victims were compensated fully and fairly.
“It is deeply dissatisfactory to find these schemes still moving far too slowly, with no government plans to track down the majority of potential claimants who may not yet be aware of their proper entitlements. It is entirely unacceptable that those affected by this scandal, some of whom have had to go through the courts to clear their names, are being forced to relitigate their cases a second time.”
The Post Office scandal was first exposed by Computer Weekly in 2009, revealing the stories of seven subpostmasters and the problems they suffered due to the accounting software (see timeline of Computer Weekly articles about the scandal below).
