Former subpostmasters who suffered as a result of errors in a pre-Horizon computer system will be able to apply for compensation from autumn this year.
Around 2,000 subpostmasters used the software, known as Capture, to do their accounts from 1992 to the introduction of the Horizon system in 1999. Many experienced unexplained shortfalls and some were convicted of financial crimes.
The government said the Capture Redress Scheme will take a “common sense approach” and seek to provide “fair redress” for subpostmasters who were forced to repay account shortfalls that appeared on the faulty system.
Gareth Thomas, Post Office minister, said: “We are committed to delivering fair and swift redress for all postmasters affected by Post Office software failures as part of our Plan for Change. Today’s announcement represents another important step in righting the wrongs of the past and rebuilding trust in the Post Office.”
Capture software was used in Post Office branches in the 1990s to replace paper-based accounting. Like the controversial Horizon system at the centre of the Post Office scandal, which saw subpostmasters blamed for unexplained losses, some were prosecuted for financial crimes.
The controversy over the Capture system emerged in January last year after the ITV drama Mr Bates vs the Post Office told the stories of subpostmasters who had suffered at the hands of the Horizon system.
It was the same month that Kevan Jones, an MP at the time who now sits in the House of Lords, highlighted evidence of injustices caused by the Capture computer system used in Post Office branches prior to the introduction of Horizon.
This triggered a campaign and, by December, the government promised financial redress and justice for subpostmasters affected by Capture problems. This followed an independent investigation by forensic experts at Kroll, which found there was a “reasonable likelihood” the Post Office Capture software caused accounting losses.
More than £1bn has been paid out in financial redress to over 7,000 former subpostmasters affected by the Horizon errors, but Capture victims – whose suffering began before Horizon was even introduced – are yet to receive a penny.
The new redress scheme, which will be the fifth in the Post Office scandal, is expected to open for applications in autumn this year. It will be available initially to 150 claimants “to ensure the process is fair, proportionate and accessible before wider implementation”, said the government.
The scheme will have a two-stage process with an eligibility review followed by an independent panel assessment.
The government said it will make “prompt preliminary payments” to ensure early acknowledgement of loss, take a holistic assessment approach that considers both financial losses and wider personal impact, and use a guided scoring and banding model for consistency in awards.
Subpostmasters between 1992 and 2000 who used Capture in their branches and suffered a financial shortfall as a result of an error can apply, as can relatives of deceased subpostmasters.
The Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) is also reviewing 28 potential wrongful convictions of subpostmasters based on losses recorded on the Capture system.
In May last year, the government was forced to introduce legislation to exonerate more than 700 subpostmasters who were convicted based on data from the faulty Horizon system.
In October, the Horizon Compensation Advisory Board wrote to the secretary of state for justice urging the government to legislate to overturn convictions of subpostmasters based on Capture system. The government said no.
Peer James Arbuthnot, has fought for justice alongside subpostmaster for over a decade and a half , sits on the advisory board. He said it is wrong for the Government to treat Capture victims in a different way from Horizon victims. “Since Parliament exonerated hundreds of Horizon subpostmasters by legislation, we should do the same for Capture victims. The Government statement says they remain committed to supporting the CCRC in its ongoing investigations. What about supporting the subpostmasters? They shouldn’t be subjected to the process of the CCRC, since the behaviour of the Post Office was identical for Capture cases and Horizon cases.”
“I do welcome the simpler process of redress proposed by the Government for those who have not been convicted of an offence, but it is entirely arbitrary as to whether subpostmasters were prosecuted, sued in the civil courts or merely disciplined,” added Arbuthnot. “The Government should think again.”
Rupert Lloyd Thomas, campaigner for Capture victims, said everything is dragging on for “far too long”, adding: “They are just stringing it out and the only beneficiaries are the Post Office.”
Neil Hudgell, lawyer at Hudgell Solicitors, which represents many Capture victims, said: “The process of assessment outlined suggests lessons have been learned from previous schemes, which have fallen well short of their purpose. Time will tell and the devil remains in the detail yet to be unveiled.”
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