EPAA new compensation scheme in the UK has been announced for sub-postmasters with reversed convictions.
About 900 people will qualify for the scheme, which is open to everyone exonerated by the law introduced in May.
Two compensation routes will be available, including one offering £600,000 as a final settlement and another route for sub-postmasters who think they owe more.
Regardless of the route chosen, those eligible for compensation will receive an immediate payment of £200,000.
Business and Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said: “Postmasters have suffered a lot, so I hope today’s new compensation scheme will help postmasters who have waited too long to get their rightful money back.”
He said postmasters who consider themselves eligible for the scheme should come forward to register.
Between 1999 and 2015, more than 900 former sub-postmasters were convicted of theft and fraud based on faulty data from an IT system called Horizon.
All of them were released in May, but many were jailed for theft and false accounting, while some were left financially devastated and even ruined their lives.
The scheme announced on Tuesday offers financial compensation similar to that offered to sub-postmasters to those whose convictions were overturned by the courts before the legislation was introduced in May.
Under the new plan, those who refuse the final fixed settlement of £600,000 will be assessed by experts at the Department of Business and Trade.
These people will automatically get an interim payment of £200,000 to £450,000.
But there is a risk that they will end up with less than £600,000 after a full assessment and that is why the government is advising people to get legal advice.
‘Horrible offer’
Not everyone will be satisfied with the final settlement offer of £600,000.
Former sub-postmaster Sami Sabet, which The wrongful conviction is overturned in 2021described as “terrifying”.
Mr Sabet, who ran three post offices in West Sussex, was given a 12-month suspended sentence after being convicted in 2009 based on evidence from a broken Post Office IT system.
“I want to know,” he told the BBC, “how do you make that figure?”
After rejecting the fixed amount, he made a full statement, but said that despite working with a lawyer, it still hasn’t been submitted due to the level of paperwork.
“Everything takes a long time, you have to show a lot of evidence, a lot of evidence and some things you can’t show after 15 years,” he told the BBC.
“You remember what happened the first time you were charged… If you don’t accept the beans they offer, you can wait forever.”
However, he said he was determined to keep fighting and the Post Office “must pay”.
Shabana Mahmood, Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice, said: “Justice must be a reality, not an ideal,” adding that the scandal was an “inexplicable and unprecedented miscarriage of justice”.
“I am happy that today we can begin to right this wrong and ensure that they receive compensation quickly and fairly,” he said.
More than 900 sub-postmasters were found guilty during the Horizon IT scandal. The ITV drama Mr Bates vs the Post Office, which aired in January, drew attention to a situation that still has many affected.
An independent inquiry has looked into the mistakes that led to the scandal.
One of the most anticipated appearances is former Post Office chief executive Paula Vennells, who cried and apologized for he handled the scandal and said that there was a great deal he could not remember and much he had not told.
Former Conservative business secretary Greg Clark also appeared before the inquest and said the Post Office’s prosecution of sub-postmasters was “corrupt” and “untrustworthy”.
However, like former business secretary Sir Vince Cable, who also appeared before the inquiry, Mr Clark said the Post Office was unaware of any problems.
Alan Cook, former managing director of the Post Office, also apologize to accuse sub-postmasters of having “hands on the till” and said he would “regret for the rest of my life” making the comments.
Additional reporting by Charlotte Edwards and Esyllt Carr.
