Over 2,000 new Post Office scandal compensation claims | EUROtoday

More than 2,000 new compensation claims have been made within the final month by individuals who imagine they’re additionally victims of the Post Office scandal, a authorities minister has mentioned.

Post Office minister Gareth Thomas informed BBC Newsnight that new claims got here after the Post Office contacted former sub-postmasters who might have been affected however had not but utilized for compensation.

Many of the greater than 4,000 unique claimants are nonetheless ready for compensation to be paid, together with 92-year-old Betty Brown, who informed the BBC that the federal government wanted to “get it done”.

Thomas mentioned the method of compensation was getting sooner, and being made “less legalistic, less adversarial”.

Mrs Brown informed the programme on Monday that she had to this point been provided lower than a 3rd of what she had claimed in compensation.

“We have waited and waited. Time is getting shorter. We’re getting older,” she mentioned. “Get it done.”

She added that she wished a “fair and just hearing”.

Mrs Brown and her husband spent greater than £50,000 of their financial savings to cowl cash that seemed to be lacking from their department in County Durham as a result of defective Horizon software program.

She was hounded out of her job and compelled to promote her put up workplace at a knockdown value in 2003.

Thomas mentioned he was “keen to find solutions” and would meet her and one other former sub-postmaster, Shazia Saddiq, who informed Newsnight she had been provided simply 10% of her declare.

Ms Saddiq ran three Post Offices in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, however “lost everything” and needed to transfer away from the realm the place she lived after she was assaulted in avenue.

The former sub-postmasters spoke to Newsnight a 12 months after an ITV drama shone a light-weight on the scandal.

Earlier this month, Parliament’s Business and Trade Select Committee referred to as for adjustments to the way in which compensation was being delivered, as a result of ongoing delays.

Thomas mentioned he was “pleased to say” extra victims had been coming ahead and that the federal government was methods of dashing up redress.

He mentioned the quantity of compensation being paid out had doubled within the final six months and the federal government was attempting to make the compensation schemes “less legalistic, less adversarial”.

Claimants can select to take a £75,000 fastened sum compensation and keep away from a prolonged evaluation course of, which ought to assist the claims be processed extra rapidly, he added.