Oldest sufferer of Post Office scandal, 92, receives last payout | EUROtoday

The oldest surviving sufferer of the Post Office Horizon IT scandal has stated she will be able to now “look to the future” after receiving her long-awaited settlement from one of many authorities’s compensation schemes.

“I can settle up my affairs. I can turn the heating up full blast, and that will be wonderful,” 92-year-old Betty Brown advised the BBC.

Mrs Brown was pressured out of her Post Office in Country Durham in 2003 after she and her late husband spent greater than £50,000 of their financial savings to cowl shortfalls that didn’t exist.

Her settlement comes after it was confirmed that campaigner Sir Alan Bates had agreed to a multi-million-pound compensation determine from the Post Office.

“At last, after 26 years, they’ve recognised justice,” she stated, including: “pity they took so long.”

Her Post Office had been some of the profitable within the area however finally she needed to promote it at a loss.

Talking about what occurred, she beforehand stated it “absolutely destroyed my whole life”.

The Horizon IT system was accountable for greater than 900 sub-postmasters being wrongfully prosecuted due to it offering incorrect data. Thousands extra, like Betty, had been pressured to make up for the alleged losses at their branches throughout the UK.

The scandal has been described as one of many widest miscarriages of justice within the UK.

Mrs Brown was one of many authentic 555 victims who took half within the landmark group authorized motion led by Sir Alan Bates in opposition to the Post Office.

She stated it was “fantastic” that Sir Alan had acquired his last settlement too, describing him as her “hero”.

“I think at long, long last, the government are starting to listen. Not only are they starting to listen, they’re beginning to act,” Mrs Brown stated.

Both Betty and Sir Alan had been a part of the Group Litigation Order compensation scheme, and people claimants had been provided the choice of taking a hard and fast sum of £75,000 or pursuing their very own settlement.

In Dec 2024, Betty was initially provided just below a 3rd of what she’d claimed for in compensation. That was step by step upped to 70% earlier this yr, which she rejected. Her case was then escalated to an impartial panel.

There had been two important sticking factors.

Firstly, the Post Office knocked 10% off the earnings she’d been making when she was operating her department, which had a huge impact on the calculation for her future lack of earnings.

And then it downgraded her declare for psychological damages from extreme to reasonably extreme, regardless that her medical report had concluded it was extreme.

Betty took up the chance to deal with the panel, an expertise she stated felt like reliving the previous.

“The emotions, the fear, the terror was all coming back,” she stated.

The panel present in her favour.

By then, Betty had already dropped a few incidental claims for enterprise prices, as a result of she did not have any paperwork and the shortage of proof was being challenged by the federal government

She has now ended up with about 95% of what she initially claimed for – and Betty is pleased with that.

The newest authorities figures up till the tip of September, which do not embrace Betty’s payout, present that of 492 eligible claimants, 385 have had their claims totally settled – with greater than 100 folks nonetheless ready for his or her last fee.

Across all the federal government compensation schemes, £1.2bn has now been paid out to greater than 9,100 victims.

“This is a redress scheme,” Betty harassed. “They’ve only given us back what they took from us. We haven’t had a penny in compensation.”

Over the final two years, that is the message Betty has been placing throughout as she’s grow to be some of the formidable campaigners for justice for former sub-postmasters.

She has appeared on BBC Breakfast, Newsnight and brought authorities ministers to job.

Betty celebrated with tea and cake at her native church espresso morning. She obtained a spherical of applause and a few hugs as she broke the information of her last payout.

Mrs Brown additionally made it clear that she was not completed.

“I don’t want to put my feet up,” she stated. “I just want the other sub-postmasters to have what I have been given. That’s all I want – justice for every one of them.”