testimony to Congress watching a yacht race at the Isle of Wight. As the public vented their anger on Twitter and Facebook, a BP spokesman defended Hayward, saying he took a break from overseeing efforts to stem the oil spill so he could watch his 52-foot yacht "Bob" take part. "He's spending a few hours with his family at a weekend. I'm sure that everyone would understand that," he added. A report from a US House of Representatives committee estimated that, as of Tuesday last week, BP had paid just $71m out of an estimated $600m in outstanding compensation demands. BP says that it has not refused any claim where the right documentation is provided. Darryl Willis, BP's head of the claims operation for the Gulf of Mexico, admitted to the Observer that about 7,000 applications – half those currently in the system – have been suspended until claimants can come up with documents which prove that the Gulf spill has affected their livelihoods. Many of the fishermen are poor Vietnamese, who speak no English, and are paid cash in hand. Willis says BP is flexible in seeking proof of loss of income, for example asking for receipts for the fish they have sold in the past instead of insisting on payslips they don't have. He added that claims centres are "biased" towards paying out claims rather than withholding payment. But in the reception of the New Orleans centre, a sign – also translated into Vietnamese – has a stark message for those queuing up: "BP's policy is no fraud!" Boat captains in particular have criticised BP for scrimping. Typically they bring in $20,000 a month at this time of year, but last month only received $5,000 compensation cheques for not being able to fish because of the Gulf ban. In some cases BP has agreed to bolster this, but only by as much as $2,000, Willis said. Willis said that there were 35 different categories of claimant, mostly associated with the fishing industry. "The further removed you are from the fishing industry, this will take more work to substantiate," he admitted. He cites the example of a gardener in Alabama who received a payout because most of his customers are fishermen who have time to tend to their gardens themselves now they aren't working. Local attorney Camilo K Salas III said that many people were turning to lawyers to pursue their claims where BP had asked for documentation that is impossible to present. Taxi drivers in New Orleans have clubbed together to hire an attorney to pursue damages against BP for lost earnings. Their attorney wants to wait a few months to see if tourism numbers fall further, so he can file a bigger claim for damages. Lawyers seem to be the biggest beneficiaries of the disaster and are pouring into places like New Orleans to pick up work. Getting a claims process up and running so soon after the accident inevitably led to mistakes. In New Orleans, BP originally based its centre in the offices of a local Vietnamese community group. But this alienated another Vietnamese faction, who refused to show up, and BP moved its centre. Back at the new centre on Michoud Boulevard, one of the BP officials said that a lot of the claimants were very emotional. Remaining compassionate can be difficult, he admitted. "We're conscious that after a while you become anaesthetised to the plight of people."
Sunday, June 20, 2010
Deepwater oil spill victims, from waitresses to cabbies and strippers, plead for $BP payouts Compensation fund
testimony to Congress watching a yacht race at the Isle of Wight. As the public vented their anger on Twitter and Facebook, a BP spokesman defended Hayward, saying he took a break from overseeing efforts to stem the oil spill so he could watch his 52-foot yacht "Bob" take part. "He's spending a few hours with his family at a weekend. I'm sure that everyone would understand that," he added. A report from a US House of Representatives committee estimated that, as of Tuesday last week, BP had paid just $71m out of an estimated $600m in outstanding compensation demands. BP says that it has not refused any claim where the right documentation is provided. Darryl Willis, BP's head of the claims operation for the Gulf of Mexico, admitted to the Observer that about 7,000 applications – half those currently in the system – have been suspended until claimants can come up with documents which prove that the Gulf spill has affected their livelihoods. Many of the fishermen are poor Vietnamese, who speak no English, and are paid cash in hand. Willis says BP is flexible in seeking proof of loss of income, for example asking for receipts for the fish they have sold in the past instead of insisting on payslips they don't have. He added that claims centres are "biased" towards paying out claims rather than withholding payment. But in the reception of the New Orleans centre, a sign – also translated into Vietnamese – has a stark message for those queuing up: "BP's policy is no fraud!" Boat captains in particular have criticised BP for scrimping. Typically they bring in $20,000 a month at this time of year, but last month only received $5,000 compensation cheques for not being able to fish because of the Gulf ban. In some cases BP has agreed to bolster this, but only by as much as $2,000, Willis said. Willis said that there were 35 different categories of claimant, mostly associated with the fishing industry. "The further removed you are from the fishing industry, this will take more work to substantiate," he admitted. He cites the example of a gardener in Alabama who received a payout because most of his customers are fishermen who have time to tend to their gardens themselves now they aren't working. Local attorney Camilo K Salas III said that many people were turning to lawyers to pursue their claims where BP had asked for documentation that is impossible to present. Taxi drivers in New Orleans have clubbed together to hire an attorney to pursue damages against BP for lost earnings. Their attorney wants to wait a few months to see if tourism numbers fall further, so he can file a bigger claim for damages. Lawyers seem to be the biggest beneficiaries of the disaster and are pouring into places like New Orleans to pick up work. Getting a claims process up and running so soon after the accident inevitably led to mistakes. In New Orleans, BP originally based its centre in the offices of a local Vietnamese community group. But this alienated another Vietnamese faction, who refused to show up, and BP moved its centre. Back at the new centre on Michoud Boulevard, one of the BP officials said that a lot of the claimants were very emotional. Remaining compassionate can be difficult, he admitted. "We're conscious that after a while you become anaesthetised to the plight of people."
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