Recommendations & Conclusions
17 items
1
Recommendation
1st Report - Post Office and Horizon sc…
Accepted in Part
Despite repeated criticism from this Committee, Post Office Ltd is still in charge of the Horizon Shortfall Scheme. While the Committee welcomes that the appeals process will be administered by the Department for Business and Trade, swift action must be taken to deal with the thousands of claimants who still …
Government response. The government partially accepted, confirming the Department for Business and Trade will take over the Overturned Convictions scheme from 3 June. For the Horizon Shortfall Scheme (HSS), they will decide on taking over administration in Spring 2025 but will ensure …
Department for Business and Trade
2
Recommendation
1st Report - Post Office and Horizon sc…
Accepted in Part
If the Government is not able to do this for all claims in a timely way, Post Office Ltd must in the first instance transfer complex cases—that is, cases that are going through full assessment—for the Department to administer. For claimants who choose to take the fixed sum offer, Post …
Government response. The government partially accepted, confirming the Department for Business and Trade will take over the Overturned Convictions scheme from 3 June. For the Horizon Shortfall Scheme (HSS), they will decide on taking over complex cases in Spring 2025 but will …
Department for Business and Trade
3
Recommendation
1st Report - Post Office and Horizon sc…
Rejected
Horizon Shortfall Scheme claimants currently receive no legal advice to help complete the complex questionnaire that acts as the gateway to the scheme. This acts against them receiving the full redress they are due. We recommend HSS claimants be given access to no-cost legal advice to support their entry into …
Government response. The government rejected the recommendation, stating the HSS was designed for claimants to apply without legal input, though funding is available for advice on offers and future appeals. They acknowledge original complexity and are considering further initial support.
Department for Business and Trade
4
Recommendation
1st Report - Post Office and Horizon sc…
Accepted
The gold-plated legalistic process of the Horizon Shortfall Scheme is not best value for the public purse. The Government should therefore ensure that Herbert Smith Freehills and Post Office Ltd are instructed to use best endeavours to simplify and accelerate the settlement of claims. (Recommendation, Paragraph 18)
Government response. The government agreed with the recommendation, stating they have already advised the Post Office and HSF to simplify and accelerate claims and continue to reiterate this importance through governance.
Department for Business and Trade
5
Recommendation
1st Report - Post Office and Horizon sc…
Accepted in Part
The Committee has learned that it will take around 18 months for the Independent Panel to assess outstanding claims on the Horizon Shortfall Scheme. We have also learned that the Post Office are expecting thousands 24 of new cases to come forward. A panel central to the process that assesses …
Government response. The government partially accepted the recommendation, stating the Post Office is increasing Independent Panel resources to reflect the workload and streamlining all parts of the Horizon Shortfall Scheme process, including increasing operational resources, to accelerate redress.
Department for Business and Trade
6
Recommendation
1st Report - Post Office and Horizon sc…
Accepted
Claimants under the Horizon Shortfall Scheme lack the same access to authoritative facilitation and case management direction available to claimants in other schemes. This can be remedied by introducing an empowered case facilitator similar to the role played by the Sir Gary Hickinbottom for Overturned Convictions. We recommend that the …
Government response. The government accepted the recommendation, stating the Post Office is committed to exploring the appointment of a case manager for the HSS, and the government will appoint one for the HSS Appeals process and remaining HSS Dispute Resolution Process cases.
Department for Business and Trade
7
Recommendation
1st Report - Post Office and Horizon sc…
Rejected
The Department should work with Post Office Ltd and claimants’ representatives to establish an independent case facilitator with a defined role in assessing whether it is reasonable to subject a claim’s basis of calculation to further scrutiny through requests for information. When requests for information are considered reasonable, it should …
Government response. The government rejected the recommendation, stating that setting deadlines for RFIs is not in claimants' best interest and a case facilitator would add unacceptable time and cost. They will, however, reinforce timely RFI delivery in reviews.
Department for Business and Trade
8
Recommendation
1st Report - Post Office and Horizon sc…
Accepted in Part
Requests for information under the Horizon Shortfall Scheme should only be made where it is deemed reasonable to increase the offer value to claimants, or in the rare instance where there may be reasonable concern about a claim’s basis of calculation. Where redress offers are calculated in-line with indicative bands …
Government response. The government partially accepted the recommendation, agreeing that requests for information (RFIs) aim to increase compensation and will work with the Post Office to ensure they are necessary and handled sensitively, accommodating evidential difficulties. They did not commit to making …
Department for Business and Trade
9
Recommendation
1st Report - Post Office and Horizon sc…
Accepted in Part
The Independent Panel on the Horizon Shortfall Scheme is already backlogged. To keep cases moving, disputed first offers to claimants must not be reassessed by the Independent Panel but instead move straight into external mediation. (Recommendation, Paragraph 36)
Government response. The government partially accepts, agreeing to internal reassessment by the Post Office where possible, aiming for bilateral settlements, with claimants retaining the option for independent mediation if no agreement is reached.
Department for Business and Trade
10
Recommendation
1st Report - Post Office and Horizon sc…
Rejected
Sub-postmasters should not be left in limbo, waiting years for the redress that they are due with no light at the end of the tunnel. Ongoing delays are unacceptable and action must be taken to rectify this. The Committee reiterates the recommendation of its predecessor—binding timeframes for each stage of …
Government response. The government rejects the recommendation for binding timeframes, stating that the Horizon Compensation Advisory Board believes they would not speed up claims, and instead outlines various practical actions it is taking to make the scheme more efficient.
Department for Business and Trade
11
Recommendation
1st Report - Post Office and Horizon sc…
Accepted in Part
The Committee welcomes that the majority of first offers for the Group Litigation Order Scheme will be complete by March 2025. This, however, does not address the time it takes between first offer and final payment. Sub-postmasters have waited long enough. The Government should aim wherever possible to complete Group …
Government response. The government partially accepts, committing to make redress offers for 90% of completed claims within 40 working days and aiming to pay substantial redress to the majority of GLO members by 31 March, but does not commit to binding timeframes …
Department for Business and Trade
12
Recommendation
1st Report - Post Office and Horizon sc…
Rejected
It is disappointing that the Department does not believe the Independent Reviewer should be given a greater role in the Group Litigation Order Scheme, despite the former Post Office Minister confessing that it was a mistake not to do so. Sir Ross Cranston is a former High Court Judge with …
Government response. The government rejects the recommendation, stating that Dentons already provide case management for the GLO scheme and Sir Ross Cranston's distinct role as Reviewer is focused on scheme principles and fairness, with limited time commitment due to other responsibilities.
Department for Business and Trade
13
Recommendation
1st Report - Post Office and Horizon sc…
Rejected
The Department should ensure that offers to claimants are delivered at or above the top-end of the illustrative redress bands and guidance established under the guidance and principles of the Group Litigation Order scheme. Further requests for information should only be made in order to increase the offer value to …
Government response. The government rejects the recommendation, arguing that adding an additional layer of governance for information requests would exacerbate delays, though it acknowledges RFIs should aim to increase offers and be made early.
Department for Business and Trade
14
Recommendation
1st Report - Post Office and Horizon sc…
Rejected
While it is reassuring that the Government have put a timeframe on completing eligibility checks, we are concerned that some individuals may never know of their right to redress. The lack of data published means it is difficult for the Committee to fully scrutinise progress of this scheme across all …
Government response. The government rejected the recommendation. They stated that individuals have already been notified since July 2024, and monthly data for England and Wales is already published online. Notification and data publication for Scotland and Northern Ireland are responsibilities of the …
Department for Business and Trade
15
Recommendation
1st Report - Post Office and Horizon sc…
Rejected
The Department should act swiftly to remove the fear factor from the Horizon Conviction Redress Scheme, ensuring that the redress offered under a full assessment settlement is never valued at below the optional fixed- sum redress which was initially available to a claimant. It should further communicate this change to …
Government response. The government rejects the recommendation, detailing its current approach which includes funding legal advice and preliminary payments, and encourages claimants to pursue detailed assessments if their losses exceed the £600k fixed sum.
Department for Business and Trade
16
Recommendation
1st Report - Post Office and Horizon sc…
Rejected
The Government must introduce binding timeframes for administrators at each stage of the process under the Horizon Convictions Redress Scheme, with financial penalties awarded to the claimant if these deadlines are not met. As with the Horizon Shortfall Scheme and Group Litigation Order Scheme, these timeframes should only be applied …
Government response. The government rejected the recommendation to introduce binding timeframes with financial penalties for administrators in the Horizon Convictions Redress Scheme, referencing reasons provided in their response to recommendation 11.
Department for Business and Trade
17
Recommendation
1st Report - Post Office and Horizon sc…
Accepted
The Department should publish a regular transparency report detailing external legal costs incurred under all schemes. It is important that the report is produced in a manner that minimises the potential for wider confusion about the basis under which legal costs are billed, distinguishing the cost of disbursements incurred by …
Government response. The government commits to publishing a quarterly transparency report detailing external legal costs on gov.uk, building on previous updates provided to the Committee.
Department for Business and Trade