Post Office IT scandal victims may be disqualified from compensation scheme

theguardian.com:

Scores of post office operators wrongly accused of embezzlement by the Post Office due to faulty accounting software, may be disqualified from a dedicated compensation scheme.

At least 170 branch managers have been told that they may not be repaid money wrongly deducted from their wages in what has been described as “the biggest miscarriage of justice in UK history” because they were unaware of the scheme, which was launched for just three months during the 2020 lockdown.

More than 700 branch managers were convicted of fraud between 2000 and 2014 after Horizon, a new computer system installed by the Post Office, showed apparent shortfalls in their accounts. Hundreds more were ordered to pay sums of up to five figures after being accused of stealing Post Office funds.

The Historic Shortfall Scheme (HSS) to compensate those left out of pocket was set up in 2020 after the Post Office admitted years of failings, but claimants were only given three months to apply. The scheme was extended for a further 15 weeks following pressure from campaigners, but those who missed the deadline face an indefinite wait to hear whether their claims will be considered.

Vivien Hammond, 87, is one of those who submitted a late claim after the scheme closed before she was aware of it. She said her late husband had his wages docked when the Horizon system was installed because Post Office staff wrongly accused him of accounting shortfalls. “We were never informed of a compensation scheme for those who paid what was demanded without being convicted,” she said. “I wrote to the Post Office for information but I never got a reply and when I consulted a solicitor they told me I should have applied in 2020. As my husband was dying of cancer in 2020, my