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Kecewed Pan Osbe 27
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Case Questionnaire and Guidance Notes - M014
Please re-visit the Ten Key Questions included in your Initial Case Overview and, with help
from your selected Professional Advisor, now provide more detail along with any supporting
evidence that you have.
This Questionnaire will set the foundation for our investigation so you should complete it in as
much detail as possible. The more information you provide, the deeper and more useful our
investigation will be.
In regard to supporting documentation, you will appreciate that written evidence is a powerful
tool in our investigation and allows us to explore your case in more detail.
In order to investigate your case, we do need to be able to fully understand your concerns. We
may therefore contact you (by phone, email or letter) to discuss your case.
If you are unable to provide sufficient information or information is not provided in a timely
manner, your case may not be investigated and may not go to Mediation.
As a reminder, in order to be eligible for investigation, your case must relate to a financial loss
or unfair treatment that you believe you have suffered as a result of the Horizon system or an
associated issue.
We repeat here the Ten Key Questions from the Initial Case Overview:
1. What is the main issue or issues you wish us to consider that relate to Horizon or its
associated processes? - .
Bposnecre outs wana Wengens Decorsnng, end
tecordin ey ao} bsemsachens
2. When did the incidents relating to the main issue or issues occur?
Dpnl eeu - Sept Bore
3. What prior contact have you had with the Post Office in regard to the incidents/issues _
that you are now reporting? Whence, caNS Gr @ msn, homs eo
. . Saens ke mre Besaa
Wre Welplare. Vaumecas pear anaes and Van Deebur)
asia forays Se HSN
~ @ dete\ ~ Moanoacer
4. How was th Sule Sb FeSbesGEsoWed ak then ie Renoccurred? _ red
WT owas whermand Proek mu Sea WOS PATS mend ec
Gudivses ids The wmptessds Ita PAS Les JSR Tomy
yeperrs Kshs X cada quite cosy de Aor Mysery
5. What is the monetary value of the issue or issues you are now reporting?
Sos s- bY plus audrdeoandin g ye 6A AD
Aqges kt
6. Were you the subject of either civil recovery action or criminal prosecution regarding
the main issue or issues you are now reporting?
No
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7. How were these actions against you (if any) resolved?
—
8. What is your explanation for the events forming the main issue or issues you are now
reporting? Yer ZN 8S Hd, Syphesn, ndt epa akad ot %
Veplacecd “ler many Yeas. Urkl an of ma Scqupran
Was veplaced chad ridrrnal excablerit balaneas tecomence
9. Did you request assistance from the Post Office regarding the issue or issues you are
nowreporting? GjqQ Several SCC Castes, request, yor
Nev eaupreny woes subdued
A A ded? 36
10. wet assistance if any was provided? sy %’ wages, Ack SX aNow
er weplaaent equopneat
In addition to the above ten questions, we should be grateful if you would provide information
about:
. The telephone calls that you made to the Post Office's helpline. Can you recall and
recount the advice or help that you received?
. The specific areas, products or operational processes where you assert that you were
given inadequate training, support or poor advice. If you now know or suspect that you
made errors as a consequence of inadequate training, support or poor advice, please tell
us about that.
. Any specific hardware or telecommunication failures that you know or suspect
contributed to your shortfall. Did you, for example, ever receive any written report from
Fujitsu in regard to the monitoring work carried out by Damien Caster? If so, please
send a copy to us at 2nd Sight.
. Any suspicions you had at the time, or now have, as to where the missing funds could
have gone. Were any specific products or processes particularly problematical for
example?
. Whether, and if so when and how, you requested help from POL in establishing the
underlying Root Cause of the shortfall that was building up.
Please retain a copy of your Case Questionnaire, and of all the documents that you
submit, and send the originals (or scanned copies of the original documents) to Second
ht, by 25th October 2013. You may send this either by email to
I or by Special Delivery to:
Second Sight Support Services Ltd
Tythe Farm
Maugersbury
Cheltenham
Gloucestershire
GL54 1HR
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Position 3.
Position 3.
Position 3.
Position 3.
Position 1.
Position 1.
Position 1.
Position 2.
Position 1.
Position 1.
Position 2.
Position 3.
Position 3.
Position 1.
Position 2.
Position 2.
Position 3.
Position 1.
Position 3.
Position 2.
Position 3.
Position 2.
Position 3.
Position 2.
Position 2.
Position 1.
Position 2.
Position 3.
Position 3.
Position 3.
Position ?.
Position 1.
Position 3.
Position 3.
Position 1.
Position 3.
Position 1.
Position 1.
6 july
7 July
9" July
9" july
9" july
9° july
9" july
9" july
9" july
9 july
9" July
9" july
9" July
12™ july
13" July
13" july
13" july
17" july
20° July
25" july
26" July
26" July
26" July
26" July
26" july
1* August
1* August
1 August
1* August
1 August
6" August
13° August
13" August
13" August
20" August
20" August
20" August
20" August
System Problems © \ 2.
15.40pm.
09.30am.
09.30am.
09.35am.
09.50am.
10.03am.
10.40am.
12.08pm.
12.31pm.
12.31pm.
12.32pm.
16.55pm.
17.16pm.
14.45pm.
9.09am
9.10am
15.12pm
14.05pm.
14.05pm.
8.50am
09.20am
09.20am
09.28am
09.52am
09.55am
15.08pm
11.25am
11.30am
12.31pm
09.00am
10.18am
10.25am
10.27am
Money Order Time Out
Cash Withdrawal £50.00
Frozen Screen
Cash Withdrawal £300.00
Unable to take Card Payment
Card Payment came up as a Pin Pad Error
Frozen Screen
Pin Pad Error.
Frozen Screen.
Frozen Screen.
Frozen Screen.
No Card Available.
Payments Allowed.
Refused Card Payment Twice
Frozen Screen
Pin Pad Refused
Pin Pad Refused
Pin Pad Refused
Frozen Screen
Frozen Screen
£120.00 Loss.
No action, re-boot
£90 shortage
£479 shortage
Frozen screen
No connection to data centre
Screen frozen
Screen frozen
Screen frozen
Screen frozen
Screen frozen
Banking failure for A/L
Screen Frozen
Screen Frozen
Screen Frozen
Unable to connect to data centre
Screen frozen. Settlement basket error service.
System busy, waiting to print AP receipt
Waiting for authorisation
Wr OVy
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Moly
Postmistress
Semilong Post Office
Mrs. Jane Brewer
Personal Details
I have owned, and worked in, Semilong Post Office for 50 years since I purchased it in 1962.
My mother was Postmistress before me, and my father Postmaster before that.
Semilong Post Office has been served, by the same family for more than 60 years, and is
well respected by the many customers we have watched, from being children to young
adults, and later bringing up their own family in the close knit area of Semilong.
Semilong Post Office had been a well run, and untroubled office until the previous 2 years,
when losses began to appear.
These losses started to escalate from £80.00 per Trading Period, to many £100s per Trading
Period.
Phone calls were made on a monthly basis to the Helpline, asking for help. When it became
apparent that the losses were reaching large amounts, I contacted Anita Bravata and asked
her for advice. I heeded her advice and I carried on, putting into practice all that she had
suggested.
Later, Anita informed me that my office was being monitored and checked, but I knew that
the pattern of losses was not due to my staff, but were due to the faults in the system
causing my losses.
I was advised to declare my cash on an hourly basis, and compare the results with
snapshots.
This was a very time consuming operation and put a great deal of pressure on my staff.
Semilong Post Office is relatively small. There are three counter positions which are close
together. Each position is used for most of the day. Our shoulders touch regularly, and each
of us knows what the other’s left hand, or right hand is going to do next. We can anticipate
who is going to move:- left, right, bend or stand back.
The impact on my staff has been horrendous, the pressure on them has been immense, and
they have gone home in tears on many occasions. They have felt to be under suspicion of
theft, and have lost much sleep, and have laid awake thinking, how can this be happening??
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I was advised to contact the police and explain to them the situation. I found it quite
traumatic to make a Police Statement. I spent several hours, both making statements and
explaining our work principals to them, and although helpful and useful, they advised me
that I was probably right, and that an equipment failure was to blame.
I made more calls to Anita, but was told that Horizon was robust and no faults could be
found.
I had asked for equipment to be changed on many occasions, only to be told (DO YOU
Pattern of losses
There was no pattern to the losses. They could happen any day, or at any time of the day.
My staff, being part time workers, never fitted into any pattern of losses.
The losses occurred when no part time staff were present. I am also a full time Postmistress,
I open the Post Office every morning. Every day I have my lunch in the Post Office, and
spend time loading and stocking the safe when necessary.
My staff are never left alone at my counters. They were fully aware of my losses which
always occurred on Position 2, my serving position.
My staff and I have worked for hours after closing time, running off reams of paper,
checking stock and transactions, and finding no mistakes.
The effect on me, personally, has also been equally horrendous. I have lost two stone in
weight. I wake twice or three times each night, worrying about the losses and, likewise.
worrying about my staff.
I have had to break into my savings to pay off the supposed losses and have even had to
cash in a Personal Pension which would have helped me in my retirement
THEN EUREKA!!!
On July oA Fujitsu Engineer, John Sargeant, came to replace a pin pad, and whilst he was
here, there was another loss of connectivity, which he admitted that he had seen happen in
other Post Offices.
He immediately contacted Horizon, and whoever he talked to, told him that he could not
see any breakdown in the system.
The strange thing was that John Sargeant was checking the system on Position 2, and was
watching the faults on the screen as he ran his checks.
Having examined the computer he told me that the machine needed a new ADSL Cable and
a Replacement Plate.
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He then contacted Damien at CRV. to arrange for the items detailed above to be sent.
Damien then arranged for other equipment to be replaced, being a Land Cable and Hub.
I was in contact with Damien on virtually a daily basis, who informed me that packets of up
to 2500 bytes were OK, but that other packets of less than 2500bytes were not, and there
was a packet loss individually.
Damien informed me that there was a noise on the line and it could be caused by a loop.
When the new equipment was installed all noise on the line disappeared and all loops had
gone.
The new equipment was monitored for 2-3 weeks but this has now been discontinued.
Damien has continued to be very helpful, and has provided me with lots of information. He
spent time telling me that a line can occasionally drop out once a day, but it can sometimes
drop out 2-4 times a day.
During my discussions with Damien he said that he would confirm all this data on request if
required.
His email address is
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osses at Semilong Post e
Outstanding 1769.93
278.96
1380.48
854.18
857.96
1140.79
466.43
643.61
163.56
312.99
699.59
411.49
654.33
191.31