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A former Hull sub-postmaster wrongly jailed in the Horizon scandal says she is still made to feel like she is a criminal as she fights for compensation.
Janet Skinner is one of several in the region who say they are “more frustrated than ever” about delays in getting what they are entitled to. The scandal has ben ongoing for decades but was recently brought into the spotlight by the ITV drama Mr Bates v The Post Office.
Between 1999 and 2015, more than 900 sub-postmasters were wrongly prosecuted due to faults in the software used by the Post Office – Horizon – which showed errors that did not exist.
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Earlier this week, the government introduced legislation which is expected to clear the majority of victims in England and Wales by the end of July. Those wrongly convicted will have the chance to settle for £600,000, without the need to bring a formal claim and others who have already settled will have their compensation topped up.
Ms Skinner was jailed for nine months in 2007 over an alleged £59,000 shortfall from her Post Office branch in Bransholme, Hull.
Her conviction was overturned in 2021 but she is now on daily medication to deal with a lifelong disability caused by the stress of the case. She has received an interim compensation payment but is frustrated by the length of time it is taking to receive full compensation.
She told the BBC : “We are no longer criminals but the way that it is going and the way that it’s been you’re still made to feel like you’re a criminal,” she said.
Days after the ITV drama was broadcast, the government said it would “swiftly exonerate and compensate” those affected, as viewers expressed their horror at what the sub-postmasters had gone through.
But Ms Skinner said: “You’re still having to beg for what is rightly deserved.”
(Image: © Lee McLean / SWNS)
Fellow scandal victim Gary Brown, from Goole, now suffers from fibromylagia and depression caused by the case. He has met with Post Office chief executive Nick Read and also received a written letter of apology.
It said: “There is nothing I can say that will undo the Post Office’s actions and how they damaged your hard-earned position in your local community and the effect it has had on your family. For all of this we are truly sorry.”
But Mr Brown – who has is also yet to receive his full payout, told the BBC he wants actions not words.
He said: “It’s horrendous. You’re just waiting non-stop. You’re just waiting for a phone call or a letter, you can’t move on.
“We are just how we were two or three years ago. Nothing has changed. As far as I’m concerned nothing is moving.”
Gary’s wife Maureen added: “We are waiting so long to get this money paid back to us that was stolen off us when they demanded it straight away.
“We had to pay it straight away. We had to find it somewhere and pay it straight away. Why aren’t they paying us back?”
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A government spokesperson said it was “working tirelessly to get compensation into the hands of those postmasters and postmistresses wronged by the injustices of this scandal”.
They said: “We’re speeding up compensation, with approximately £179m already paid, and legislation is being brought forward to overturn the convictions of those who were wrongly prosecuted, with £600,000 in compensation also available.”
To date, 102 convictions have been overturned and 35 of those people have received full and final settlements.
