Broad Range of Local Businesses Still Eligible for Oil Spill Claims

BRADENTON — The U.S. Supreme Court's recent rejection of BP's challenge to its multibillion-dollar settlement agreement over the 2010 Gulf of Mexico spill has extended the claim deadline for impacted businesses. Many of those businesses have been unaware that claims for losses caused by the environmental catastrophe could still be filed, and now have until June 8, 2015 to do so.

The court's Dec. 8 decision not to hear BP's appeal is a major setback for BP as they try to limit payments over an historic disaster, which killed 11 people and led to the largest offshore oil spill in U.S. history.

The London-based company signed a 2012 settlement agreement to compensate businesses claiming financial losses due to the spill, but has since claimed that the settlement has been misinterpreted by the settlement fund's court-appointed administrator, Patrick Juneau, forcing the oil behemoth to pay businesses which could not document economic loss claims, a key element of the settlement.

BP has so far paid $2.3 billion in economic loss claims, out of $4.25 billion in total compensation to individuals and businesses. The deadline to file a claim has been extended to June 8, 2015, leaving claimants just under 6 months to file their claims.

Tampa based attorney Tom Young, who is assisting many local businesses in navigating the claims process says that nearly every area business is eligible to file a claim, and 30-50 percent will qualify for payment averaging over $200,000.