A 91-year-old former assistant postmistress from County Durham, the oldest victim of the Post Office IT scandal, has been offered less than a third of what she asked for in compensation.
Betty Brown and her husband spent more than £50,000 of their savings to cover unexpected losses which began as soon as the Horizon IT system was installed in her branch.
She was forced out of her job and forced to sell her post office at a knockdown price in 2003.
“We are just being treated like dung,” Ms Brown told the BBC.
The government said it was settling claims at a faster pace than ever before.
Ms. Brown's lawyers, with the help of forensic accountants, spent nearly three years preparing her compensation claim.
Ms Brown was one of the first 555 victims who took part in Alan Bates' historic class action against the Post Office.
They won their battle five years ago this month, but never received adequate compensation, as the money they received was largely swallowed up by the enormous costs of funding their cause .
They now have their own compensation system, but so far only 221 victims have received their final compensation.
“You talk about Christmas and goodwill. Where is the goodwill towards the sub-postmasters here,” Ms Brown said.
She says that with the help of her government-paid advisers, several reports were prepared to support her detailed claim.
Further information was then requested by lawyers acting on behalf of the government which oversees the GLO program. When her offer was accepted, it was 29% of what she had asked for.
“I’m totally disgusted. This just adds insult to injury.”
Ms Brown said she did not understand why one group of lawyers was paid to carefully analyze and present her case only for another group of lawyers to then reduce her claim to a “paltry” 29 per cent.
Mrs. Brown was one of the Post Office's golden girls before the era of Horizon. Its branch was one of the most prosperous in its region.
But as losses mounted, she was forced out of her business by a Post Office manager who thought she was “too old” and needed “new blood.” She never wanted to retire.
She finally broke her silence earlier this year, telling the BBC how stress had taken its toll and saw her lying awake at night putting a sheet between her teeth to stop them chatting.
In Ms. Brown's offer letter, she received nothing for loss of future earnings and was only offered a third of the amount she had claimed for loss of past earnings.
She also did not receive the full amount she claimed for harassment, even though the Department of Business and Commerce acknowledged that she had been the victim of harassment related to issues with Horizon.
Lawyers representing companies involved in the compensation were questioned last month by the Business and Commerce Select Committee, amid complaints about the slow progress and complexity of the various schemes.
“We try to maximize offers. We try to give the benefit of the doubt. We are evaluating that and we are looking for fairness across the board,” Mark Chesher, a partner at Addleshaw Goddard, the law firm that assesses GLO’s payment claims, told MPs.
Ms. Brown disagrees. “What they say and what they do are two different things.”
She rejected his offer and will submit her case to an independent committee for evaluation, which will take more time.
“Next year I will be 92 years old and I find it difficult to continue, to maintain mobility.”
A government spokesperson said: “We recognize the immeasurable suffering that Horizon scandal victims like Betty have endured and we are working tirelessly across government to provide them with full and fair redress. “
“This government is resolving claims at a faster pace than ever before. By the end of October, around £438 million had been paid out to more than 3,100 claimants under four schemes, an 85% increase since the end of June. “
