Sun, 06 Jul 2025

Sun, 06 Jul 2025 Post Office Horizon scandal: Why hundreds were wrongly prosecuted

Many were wrongly prosecuted after faulty software said money was missing from their Post Office branch accounts.

* The Horizon scandal has been described as the UK's most widespread miscarriage of justice, with over 900 sub-postmasters prosecuted due to faulty software.
* Hundreds were sent to prison for false accounting and theft, while others were financially ruined.
* In 2017, a group of 555 sub-postmasters won £58m in compensation from the Post Office, but much was spent on legal fees.
* The scandal came to wider public attention after an ITV drama about it aired last year, leading to new legislation being passed to quash convictions and new compensation schemes being established.
* As of June 2025, over £1bn has been awarded in compensation to just over 7,300 sub-postmasters across four main schemes.
* Some individual claims have been valued at over £1m, with the chair of the Horizon Compensation Advisory Board saying "it's still a long way to go" for those affected.
* The scandal was also the subject of a public inquiry, which heard evidence from Post Office and Fujitsu employees.
* The first part of the inquiry's report is due to be published on July 8.
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