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More than 13 people may have killed themselves as a result of the Post Office Horizon IT scandal, while it drove at least 59 more to contemplate suicide, according to the first findings from the public inquiry into what has been labelled the worst miscarriage of justice in UK history.
The 162-page volume one report from Sir Wyn Williams, the retired judge who chaired the hearings, looks at the “human impact” on the more than 1,000 post office operators wrongly accused of taking money from their branches because faulty software showed a shortfall.
It also covers the issue of compensation, arguing that the Post Office and its advisers had in many cases adopted an “unnecessarilyf adversarial attitude” towards making initial offers to those seeking redress, who now number 10,000.
While the scandal has been linked to four suicides, Williams said it was possible that the total could be more than 13, as indicated by the Post Office in March, but that some deaths have not been reported. A further 19 people turned to alcohol abuse, with some saying they could not sleep at night without drinking first.
Of the 59 who considered killing themselves as a result of their experiences with the Post Office, 10 went on to attempt suicide, some on more than one occasion.
One post office operator said: “The impact on me of the treatment the Post Office subjected me to has been immeasurable. The mental stress was so great for me that I had a mental breakdown and turned to alcohol as I sunk further into depression. I attempted suicide on several occasions and was admitted to a mental health institution twice.”
About 1,000 post office operators were prosecuted and convicted by the Post Office between 1999 and 2015, the report said, because of faulty Horizon accounting software that inaccurately recorded losses and money missing in branches, making it look as if they had committed fraud. A further 50 to 60 people, possibly more, were prosecuted but not convicted.
Williams said he had received more than 200 witness statements from victims and virtually all “had suffered very significantly and many had endured a degree of hardship which was very severe by any standards”.
The judge recounted how some people became seriously ill, struggled with mental health problems and suffered financial hardship, with a number of them losing their homes and/or becoming bankrupt.
Even those who were acquitted often found themselves “ostracised” in their communities; and many died before receiving compensation – reports have put the figure at about 350. In some cases, family members themselves suffered psychiatric illnesses and “very significant financial losses”.
There are about 10,000 people who are claiming compensation through four schemes, two of which were merged in early June, and that number is likely to rise “at least by hundreds, if not more” over the coming months, according to the report.
Williams said: “I am persuaded that in the difficult and substantial claims, on too many occasions, the Post Office and its advisers have adopted an unnecessarily adversarial attitude towards making initial offers, which have had the effect of depressing the level at which settlements have been achieved.”
He called for urgent action to deliver “full and fair” compensation to post office operators, asking the government and the Post Office to agree on a definition of the term to follow when deciding how much to offer.
Williams said victims should receive free legal advice, funded by the government, saying it was “unconscionable and wholly unfair” that claimants in the Horizon Shortfall Scheme were unable to get such help to assess whether they should opt for the fixed sum offer or assessment of their claims. He also said close family members of post office operators affected by the scandal should receive compensation.
Williams said he expected the government to respond by 10 October, and asked that ministers, together with the Post Office and the Japanese technology company Fujitsu, which developed the faulty software, outline a programme for restorative justice by the end of October.
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The report, which comes after 225 days of inquiry hearings with 298 witnesses, did not detail the total compensation paid out so far. According to the government, more than £1bn had been paid out to more than 7,300 post office operators affected by the Horizon IT scandal by 9 June.
The compensation schemes were set up by the Post Office and the Department for Business and Trade, but they have been criticised for being too slow with the payouts.
Williams’s report contained 17 case illustrations including that of Millie Castleton, who was eight when the Post Office alleged that her father, Lee Castleton, was liable for shortfalls at his branch, his contract terminated and he was later ordered to pay the Post Office £25,858.95 plus interest and their legal costs, a total sum of £309,807.94.
Millie recounted that she became the target of bullying at school, where she was asked: “Didn’t your Dad steal loads of money or something?” At the age of 17, she was suffering from depression and was diagnosed with anorexia, and was forced by illness to “take a year out” at university. At one point she was admitted to hospital with heart-related illness.
“That nagging voice in my head … still tells me that my past and my family’s struggle will define me, that it will be a branding on my skin forever,” Millie said. “I’m 26 and am very conscious that I may never be able to fully commit to natural trust. But my family is still fighting. I’m still fighting, as are many hundreds involved in the Post Office trial.”
In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans can be contacted on freephone 116 123, or email [email protected] or [email protected]. In the US, you can call or text the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on 988, chat on 988lifeline.org, or text HOME to 741741 to connect with a crisis counselor. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. Other international helplines can be found at befrienders.org
