The Devastating Impact: Lives Shattered by a Software Malfunction and a Respected British Firm
Centuries-old British corporation's software glitch devastates lives, leading to wrongful convictions, bankruptcies, and tragic suicides A harrowing story of injustice and trauma endured for two decades
The software falsely indicated that money was missing, leading to the conviction and bankruptcy of numerous individuals managing Post Office branches. The devastating impact of this ordeal even led to some individuals taking their own lives. The UK government, owner of the Post Office, has acknowledged this as a grave miscarriage of justice, describing it as one of the worst in British history.
For more than twenty years, the lives and reputations of many sub-postmasters in the UK were ruined, families were torn apart, and savings were wiped out. Out of the thousands of affected sub-postmasters who operated small businesses in various British communities, 700 were found guilty of criminal offenses and served time in prison. The issues stemmed from errors in an IT system called Horizon, developed by Japan's Fujitsu and implemented in 1999 to modernize traditional paper-based accounting methods.
Shortly after the system was installed, branch managers discovered that the software was flawed. It frequently indicated significant discrepancies in Post Office account balances, with thousands of pounds seemingly gone missing. In some instances, the errors were substantial. Jo Hamilton, who was managing a post office in a southern English village in 2003, experienced a shortfall of £2,000 ($2,500) when using her Horizon computer. Upon recalculating, she observed that the discrepancy "doubled in front of (her) eyes," she told CNN.
Hamilton ultimately decided to refinance her home to cover the supposed shortfall, which had inflated to £36,000 ($45,800) by the time she was taken to court by the Post Office in 2007 on charges of theft and false accounting. Feeling ashamed and worn out, she confessed to false accounting in exchange for dropping the theft charge, stating, "It was destroying me."
Public awareness and outrage over the scandal have surged since the broadcast of a TV drama highlighting its brutal human toll, despite legal cases and UK media reports spanning years.
The ITV network drama "Mr Bates vs The Post Office' follows British sub-postmasters' tireless campaign for justice.
ITV
The ITV network drama "Mr Bates vs The Post Office" centers on the relentless fight of sub-postmasters to clear their names and seek compensation. Alan Bates, a former sub-postmaster, spearheaded the movement.
Following the show's debut, the government has swiftly shown the kind of urgency that sub-postmasters have long been calling for. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced on Wednesday that parliament would promptly pass historic legislation to overturn the convictions of hundreds of sub-postmasters.
The political and legal establishment in the United Kingdom still has crucial questions to address, such as who knew what and when, whether any individuals should be criminally accountable, and to what extent Fujitsu, a $30 billion company and a major UK government supplier, should compensate victims. According to a spokesperson for the company, the Post Office has already paid over £138 million ($176 million) in compensation, following a 2019 civil lawsuit by over 500 sub-postmasters, which determined that Horizon had "bugs, errors, and defects."
"We are doing all we can to right the wrongs of the past, including extensive work to support overturning wrongful convictions," the Post Office spokesperson said.
I was so afraid
Sub-postmasters have always faced overwhelming odds. Their Post Office contracts, essentially franchise agreements, held them responsible for any financial losses in their branch. After their contracts were terminated, Post Office investigators often prevented them from entering their business premises to gather evidence in their defense.
Whenever Hamilton phoned the Horizon helpline, operators told her she was the only person experiencing problems with the system.
Jo Hamilton outside the Royal Courts of Justice in London in 2021 after her conviction was overturned
Jonathan Wells
Other individuals also encountered similar issues. Wendy Buffrey experienced unexplained shortfalls on Horizon in 2008, with the same calculations being resubmitted and doubling. According to Post Office investigators, she was the only one affected by these problems.
"I realized I would be held accountable for the £36,000. I maxed out all my credit cards, put £10,000 back in, and rolled the accounts over because I didn't know what else to do," the former sub-postmistress in the English town of Cheltenham told CNN.
At the time, a lawyer advised Buffrey that pleading not guilty would likely lead to a three-year prison sentence. "I was so afraid that I pleaded guilty to false accounting when they dropped the theft charge," she said.
The ongoing ordeal has had a severe impact. "I suffer from stress-related fibromyalgia, so I'm constantly in pain," she explained.
According to Neil Hudgell, a lawyer representing around 350 sub-postmasters, he has been informed of cases where sub-postmasters and their family members have tragically taken their lives due to false accusations or the loss of their businesses and reputations.
Seeking justice
Martin Griffith's wife revealed in her impact statement that he intentionally stepped in front of a bus as a result of severe depression, triggered by the termination of his contract by the Post Office. Desperate to cover financial shortfalls after being robbed at his branch, he had resorted to borrowing from his parents.
Before the TV show aired, sub-postmasters were making slow progress towards seeking justice.
After the legal victory in 2019, hundreds more sub-postmasters have stepped forward, claiming that the Horizon system had inaccurately shown discrepancies. However, only 93 out of the 700 convicted sub-postmasters, including Hamilton and Buffrey, have been cleared of charges. Over 2,700 have applied for compensation so far.
However, numerous sub-postmasters argue that the compensation they have received is insufficient, and are insisting on holding those responsible for the scandal accountable.
According to a representative for Londons Metropolitan Police, a criminal investigation was initiated in 2020 to look into potential fraud offenses committed by the Post Office. The investigation also includes looking into potential offenses connected to the prosecution of sub-postmasters by Fujitsu.
Two government ministers declared this week that Fujitsu may have to provide compensation to victims, depending on the conclusions of an impartial public investigation into the scandal.
A Fujitsu spokesperson stated that the company is "fully dedicated to assisting the investigation in order to comprehend the incident and draw lessons from it."
"The inquiry has underscored the profound impact on postmasters' lives and that of their families, and Fujitsu has apologized for its part in their suffering," the spokesperson said.
The offices of Japanese technology firm Fujitsu in Bracknell, England, seen on January 10, 2024
Leon Neal/Getty Images
James Hartley, a lawyer at Freeths, the law firm that represented sub-postmasters in their civil case four years ago, asserts that the Post Office is primarily responsible for the situation. "This entire case revolves around flaws in a large-scale IT system, but more importantly, it highlights the corporate conduct of the Post Office," he explained to CNN.
At Buffrey in Cheltenham, the same opinion is held.
"The Horizon system was a malfunctioning piece of machinery and software," she stated. "(But) it was individuals who advanced our prosecutions. It was individuals who neglected to investigate. It was individuals who led us to imprisonment, to our demise, and to long-term illness, perhaps for the remainder of our lives."
20 years of trauma
No amount of money can undo "20 years of trauma," said Siema Kamran, who bought a post office branch in north London with her husband, Kamran Ashraf, in 2001.
Three years later, Ashraf succumbed to pressure from his lawyer and pleaded guilty to theft following a Post Office audit that revealed a discrepancy of £25,000 ($32,000). However, Ashraf's conviction was overturned in 2020.
Kamran vividly recalls the date of her husband's court appearance - February 26 - twenty years ago, the day he was sentenced and sent to prison.
"I had expected to see him in a few hours, but when I tried calling him, it went straight to voicemail," she informed CNN. "Then, unexpectedly, my cousin appeared at the door and broke the news that my husband had been incarcerated. That day, it felt like my entire world came crashing down."
Siema Kamran, right, and her husband Kamran Ashraf. Ashraf was wrongfully convicted and sentenced to nine months in prison in 2004.
Courtesy of Siema Kamran
Ashraf endured the initial weeks of his nine-month sentence in a maximum-security prison, confined for 23 hours a day, before being moved to a less secure facility. After four months, he was released, but had to wear an electronic ankle tag for the subsequent five months for monitoring by authorities of his location.
According to Kamran, her husband, who suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder due to his ordeal, is unable to speak to the media about his experience. She, along with her husband and their three children, all need therapy, which she believes they will require indefinitely.
As a self-employed make-up artist, Kamran refuses to work for a large company again. "If the Post Office can treat you like this, then who knows what other companies are capable of," she said.
