Transparency data

Quashed convictions management information: 5 December 2024

Updated 5 December 2024

Applies to England and Wales

This page contains information on the progress made by the government in identifying convictions imposed in England and Wales which were quashed by the Post Office (Horizon System) Offences Act 2024 on 24 May 2024.

In February 2024, the Post Office and Crown Prosecution Service made the Ministry of Justice aware of a total of 936 records for possible individuals who may have been convicted because of the faulty Horizon accounting system. Of these records, 27 did not include sufficient data for us to trace the individual’s conviction.

In addition to this, individuals can identify themselves through contacting the Ministry of Justice Post Office convictions casework team or through the Horizon Convictions Redress Scheme website at any time. As of 29 November, the Ministry of Justice is aware of 48 individuals who have self-identified and were not previously known to us. These cases are under assessment. As there is no time limit for individuals to self-identify, this number may increase over time.

There are currently therefore 957 individual cases that have been or are being considered. As of 29 November, we have assessed 91% of these individual cases.

The table below contains information on assessments made as well as letters sent, as not every individual will receive a letter. This is explained in greater detail in the explanatory notes below the table.

	15 November – 29 November 2024	Total to date (July* - 29 November 2024)
Total number of individuals whose convictions have been assessed (1)	53	875
The number of individuals identified as having at least one conviction quashed by the Act. (2)	39	561
Number of individuals who have been sent a letter (2a)	45	526
The number of individuals assessed and written to (or due to be written to), requesting further information to help identify if their convictions are in scope of the Act. (3)	12	157
Number of individuals who have been sent a letter (3a)	13	125
The number of individuals confirmed as having no convictions quashed by the Act. (4)	2	157
Individuals who only have convictions for an offence committed outside the time period specified by the Act and/or individuals who only have convictions for an offence other than those specified in the Act. (4a)	-1**	23
Individuals who only have convictions imposed after the Act came into force (4b)	0	0
Individuals who only have convictions where the prosecution was not brought by the Post Office or the Crown Prosecution Service in England and Wales (4c)	2	14
Individuals who only have convictions already considered by the Court of Appeal (4d)	1	18
Individuals who only have convictions already quashed by the courts (4e)	0	101
Individuals for whom a not guilty verdict was recorded for the offence(s) being considered (4f)	0	1
Total number of convictions identified as quashed by the Act (5)	153	1960

*MoJ identified the first individuals with at least one conviction as in scope of the Act w/c 22 July.

** The figures in the table above may change where a case has been reassessed following additional information being provided.

The figures in this release are from a live system and may differ from information released previously. In November 2024, the counting methodologies for all figures were updated to better account for instances of updated and amended records, data assurance processes, and those who self-identify. Differences may also exist between figures due to differences in time data was extracted. Letters returned as undeliverable are removed from the totals of 2a and 3a. The total number of individual cases that have been or are being considered has increased to 957 since the last publication. This is due to an additional 8 individuals who self-identified to the casework team who were not included in the previous total.

What the data means

(1) This number represents all individuals whose convictions have been assessed.

(2) Individuals identified as having at least one conviction quashed by the Act will be eligible for the Horizon Convictions Redress Scheme. If the individual is deceased their personal representative may be eligible to submit a claim. Once we have confirmed that someone has a conviction quashed by the Act, we send them a letter to notify them of this as soon as possible. The number of these individuals we have sent letters to can be found at (2a). Letters are sent out in batches and there may be a small delay between assessments being made and letters being sent. There are currently 31 individuals with quashed convictions that we cannot write to as we have been unable to confirm their current address.

(3) This number refers to individuals whose convictions appear to be out of scope but may be able to provide further information to help us identify whether their convictions are in scope of the Act. We are writing to these individuals to request this information. The number of these individuals we have sent letters to can be found at (3a). Letters are sent out in batches and there may be a small delay between assessments being made and letters being sent. There are currently 31 individuals that we cannot write to in this category as we have been unable to confirm their current address.

(4) This number refers to individuals who have not had any convictions quashed by the Act in England and Wales and provides a breakdown of this category into the following reasons:

• The conviction was for an offence committed outside the time period specified by the Act or the conviction was for an offence other than those specified in the Act. (4a)
• The conviction was imposed after the Act came into force (which was on 24 May 2024). (4b)
• The prosecution was not brought by the Post Office or the Crown Prosecution Service in England and Wales. (4c)
• The conviction has already been considered by the Court of Appeal. (4d)
• The conviction has already been quashed by the courts. (4e)
• A not guilty verdict was recorded for the offence(s) being considered (4f)

We do not write letters to individuals in this group unless they have self-identified and asked us to consider their convictions.

(5) Individuals may have more than one conviction that falls within scope of the Act. The total number of convictions is therefore higher than the number of individuals who have been assessed as having at least one conviction in scope of the Act.

Any convictions given in Northern Ireland are within scope of the Act but are not covered by this publication. Any convictions imposed in Scotland are not covered by the Act and are considered under separate legislation.

How we identify convictions in scope

The Act sets out 5 conditions alongside other criteria.

The 5 conditions which must be met for a conviction to have been quashed cover: offence date; offence type; that the individual was working in a Post Office or carrying on a Post Office business at the time of the alleged offence; that the offence was allegedly committed in connection with carrying on or working on Post Office business; and whether Horizon was installed in the branch the individual was working in at the time.

The Ministry of Justice Post Office convictions casework team are conducting complex checks to identify whether individuals identified to us have any convictions that are within scope of the Act. In order to limit the burden on individuals to provide information themselves to show that their convictions are in scope of the Act, we are checking multiple data sources to obtain information on which convictions meet the Act’s criteria. This includes records from the Police National Computer, Post Office Limited, His Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service, His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs, and the Criminal Cases Review Commission. Due to inconsistencies discovered between the different data sources, the process of identifying quashed convictions is taking longer than initially expected.

Once the casework team have verified that each conviction meets the Act’s criteria, they will write to individuals to notify them of this. In some instances, these letters may ask the individual for more information so that their convictions can be fully assessed. In some cases we have assessed a conviction in scope but are unable to contact the individual because we have been unable to confirm their current address. Even where we cannot contact an individual, their criminal records will be amended to reflect the relevant quashed conviction(s).

If you have not yet received a letter and believe you have an eligible conviction, we encourage you to register here or contact the casework team by email at: PostOfficeConvictions@justice.gov.uk. This information will be shared with the convictions casework team who will confirm whether the individual’s convictions are already being considered and - if they were not previously known to the team - will commence the collation of data and assessment.

Data on Horizon-related financial redress can be found here.