Post Office scandal affected relationships of two-thirds of victims

Almost two-thirds of people hit by the Post Office Horizon scandal have had their personal relationships affected by it, according to the findings of a survey.

The survey figures, revealed in a Post Office scandal Public Inquiry paper, also revealed how the adult children of former subpostmasters experienced bullying, financial issues and mental health struggles because of the scandal.

A total of 240 people affected by the scandal have so far given their stories to the public inquiry project. The latest findings reveal that as many as 65% of those affected by the Horizon scandal have had their family and relationships affected by it.

One anonymous respondent said: “My children had their childhoods abruptly taken from them when the gravity of the situation became too serious for me to shield them any longer.”

The paper is part of the Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry’s listening project, known as In your own words. It revealed how scandal victims suffered the breakdown of relationships, estrangement from family members, and acute loneliness.

It also revealed the impact of alcohol abuse, brought on by stress and the number of victims who died before knowing the truth about Horizon, “magnifying the grief” of the bereavements.

The Post Office Statutory public inquiry, which began hearing evidence in February 2022 with Human Impact Hearings, is now in its seventh phase.

Survey respondents also called for fair and comprehensive redress and further public awareness about the scandal.

Thousands of former subpostmasters and Post Office branch workers were affected by the scandal, with hundreds wrongly prosecuted based on flawed evidence from the Post Office’s flawed Horizon computer system. Many more were forced into bankruptcy covering account shortfalls that only existed in the Horizon system.

Respondents to the survey called on all affected to continue their fight for justice as a group. One respondent said: “We need to stick together. Don’t give up hope.”

The report added: “They also encouraged those impacted by the Horizon scandal to seek help, emphasising that no one should feel alone when dealing with these issues.”

Leila Pilgrim, secretary to the Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry, said: “As the inquiry has progressed, the importance of human stories remains. Every story shared is vital to understanding the ripple effects of the scandal’s impact.”

The Post Office scandal was first exposed by Computer Weekly in 2009, revealing the stories of seven subpostmasters and the problems they suffered due to Horizon accounting software, which led to the most widespread miscarriage of justice in British history (see below timeline of Computer Weekly articles about the scandal since 2009).