Minister responds to criticism of Post Office Capture redress scheme

A former subpostmaster’s claim for redress through the scheme to compensate users of the Post Office’s faulty Capture software has been put on “pause” following complaints and a call for parity with Horizon victims.

The minister in charge of the Capture redress scheme has written to the former subpostmaster, promising to “consider” the matters he raised.

As reported by Computer Weekly last week, former subpostmaster Lee Bowerman received a financial settlement offer through the Capture redress scheme, the value of which equated to just 7% of his professionally calculated claim.

The former subpostmaster in South Wales, who lost his business more than 30 years ago, was part of a group that helped the government department design the scheme.

Bowerman complained that consequential losses were not included in the offer and that there was limited opportunity to appeal decisions on redress awards. He called for parity with former Horizon users who were also affected in the Post Office scandal.

Read more about the Capture scheme: Post Office Capture
redress scheme ‘went down like lead balloon’ and is ‘discriminatory’.

In the letter sent last week to Department for Business and Trade (DBT) minister Blair McDougall, MP, Bowerman wrote: “Throughout every meeting, without exception, we were explicitly assured that there would be full parity with the Horizon redress schemes. These assurances were clear and repeated.”

Bowerman said this has not happened in his case.

Last week, a spokesperson said the government does not recognise the 7% figure quoted by Bowerman, stating: “The [compensation] scheme has been designed to account for the time elapsed and provides a fair way to recognise harm, even when records are limited. Any claimant unhappy with their offer can appeal to the chair of the independent panel.”

McDougall responded to Bowerman’s letter this week. “As part of our complaints procedure, I have asked officials who administer the redress scheme to consider the points you raise. In the meantime, I can confirm that your application will be placed on pause, as requested. This means you will not be affected by the two-month appeals timeline at this stage,” he wrote.

Bowerman said the letter appears to be “just a holding position for now”, but added: “I hope they will address all the key concerns in my letter and issue clear guidance in line with the scheme as set out.”

There are concerns about the Capture redress scheme, with a growing feeling that those who suffered as a result of errors in the software are being treated differently from those who received redress through a similar scheme designed for former Horizon software users.

Claimants in the Horizon redress scheme often also received offers that were worth a fraction of their claims, but were afforded more opportunities to appeal. As a result, initial offers increased significantly in many cases.

For example, figures from Hudgell Solicitors, which represented hundreds of those affected by the Post Office scandal, revealed that former Horizon user Bob Stevenson, who was suspended from his position in 2002 over an alleged Horizon shortfall of £10,000, received £51,200 compensation in May 2023. This increased to £502,000 on appeal.

The law firm said the Post Office initially only offered compensation for the money Stevenson, now in his eighties, had paid into accounts to make up for shortfall losses, distress and inconvenience, with “no award for the impact of his suspension and termination of contract, the loss of his business, house and subsequent bankruptcy”.

Other examples include compensation offers being increased, following legal advice, from £4,400 to £133,700; from £17,700 to £253,900; and from £21,690 to £238,000.

The Capture redress scheme is offering initial payments of £10,000, with final award bands up to £300,000, to subpostmasters who suffered because of the software’s flaws, with “exceptional cases” receiving payments above the upper limit.

Up to 19 December 2025, the Capture compensation scheme had received 110 applications. A total of 20 have so far been deemed eligible and 90 are being assessed. One offer has been made so far, but not yet accepted. When an application is deemed eligible, the claimant is entitled to a preliminary payment of £10,000. An independent panel then processes these claims before a full offer of financial redress.