BP stalling payments to oil spill victims - Feinberg

[cal04]

Source: Reuters

British energy giant BP Plc is holding up payments to economic victims of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, Kenneth Feinberg, administrator of a $20 billion compensation fund, said on Saturday.

"I have a concern that BP is stalling claims. Yes, BP is stalling. I doubt they are stalling for money. It's not that. I just don't think they know the answers to the questions (by claimants)," Feinberg told reporters.

He was speaking on the sidelines of a town hall meeting in southern Alabama at which fishermen and other business owners expressed frustration and anger at what they say is a slow and complex claims process that lacks transparency.

(snip)
"After today there will be no more business as usual. I learned today the depth of frustration in people here on the coast," Feinberg told the meeting.

Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE66N15020100724

[louis-t]

1. It will get much worse. As soon as the media stops

paying attention to the gulf, as soon as the public is on to the next missing blonde girl, BP will stop paying altogether. Just like Exxon.

[Lightning Count]

4. It will be another Haiti. nt

[glowing]

2. This has been going on since the beginning of the oil spill and Feinberg is just understanding now

the frustration.. What the hell is he doing sitting on the 20billion for? AND what will they do about our property values losing in an already horrible market? AND what do you pay to the people like wait staff and hotel workers who are losing money from the lack of tourism? The only people I've heard even possibly get money out of BP is from the businesses that are directly on the water; like the fishermen, etc. When do they pay the rest of us? How do they pay the rest of us?

AND when is the govt finally going to pony up and start moving people out of the worst areas effected? Its a bit hard to up and move when you have no money to relocate and your largest investment is the home that's sitting nearby toxic soup or a fishing vessel that sits idol.

[Statistical]

6. "What the hell is he doing sitting on the 20billion for?"

There is no $20 billion. OF course I got called anti-Obama when I pointed that out month ago.

BP will (as in future tense) pay $5 billion this year.
It will then pay $1.25B each qtr in 2011, 2012, 2013.

The $20B fund has $0.00 in it right now. BP will make the first $3B payment "soon".

[dipsydoodle]

9. IF........

their credit rating had not tanked they'd have issued bonds and so some dough would now be available. This was poined out to by a few of us to those here who went whoopee in complete ignorance of the fact it would prevent bond sales. Bit like some of you , not you though , shooting yourselves in the foot really.

[Igel]

12. You need to know facts.

Critical thinking and understanding cause and effect are meaningless ideas if you don't have a sufficient set of facts at your command. You can be brilliant and a Nobel Prize winner in chemistry and miss fairly simple errors of facts and problems with an argument in a completely unrelated field.

[dipsydoodle]

13. The reduction in their credit rating

is a recorded fact as is the withdrawal of the bond sale. The bond sale would've been in receipt of funds far sooner than the asset sale to Apache the proceeds of which are spread over a 12 month period.

[Lightning Count]

14. So they have no funds available?

So I'm sure they will immediately issue an announcement concerning cuts in pay to all executives.

[dipsydoodle]

16. So far they've spent

US$3.1 billion on clean up costs. What's that - mist ? That's where their money has been going. If you've got some bright new way of spending money twice then do please advise all of us.

[Lightning Count]

17. So they're broke?

How much do you think they should pay and on what timeline?

[Statistical]

18. Of course that is my point.

Everyone cheered "hooorayyyyy" at the so called "$20B" fund. I simply pointed out it won't be a $20B fund until 2014. At the time I was called an Obama basher.

BP could have paid much more, much faster however the agreement w/ govt calls for much less as such they are going to pay less.
They aren't going to pay claims one second faster than mandated by the agreement.

That means $3B by end of Q3 (end of sept)
then $2B more by end of Q4 (end of Dec)
then $1.25B a qtr after that.

While the agreement doesn't protect BP in how much in claims are paid it dose provide a speed limit on how fast money leave the company.

[CountAllVotes]

19. you are the one that holds BP stock

and you gloat about it and you buy and sell it for profits. :puke:

Shame on you!

:dem: :kick:

[Statistical]

25. Actually I only answered your question.

You asked me a question and I answered.

If you didn't ask me the question I never would have advised you.

That doesn't change the fact that the $20B fund "Obama forced" on BP controls the max rate at which BP will pay funds. In essence it puts a speed limit on how fast money will flow from BP -> claimants. That is good for investors and bad for those affected.

I pointed that out when the fund was created (at which time I did not hold BP stock) and was told I am "anti-Obama".

[dipsydoodle]

27. Broke ? Get real.

And no I won't give you the link to their accounts - search for yourself. Doubtless you've got an answer to exactly how they spend fixed assets etc.

You really should stop taking Prozac and HRT at the same time.

The answer to the latter part of your question is as soon as possible. How much is their affair - not mine.

[Lightning Count]

28. So you make an assertion and I'm supposed to provide the facts?

Not the customary way it works.

[ashling]

21. Furthermore, as the article points out,

He doesn't even take control until August 10

[elleng]

22. Feinberg is on C-Span now, from Wed. hearing, about his job.

[Knight Hawk]

20. Under water

The only bit of good news I can think of is that for a lot of people out of a job and money on the Gulf coast, they can probably walk away from their house because it is probably under water due to the crash in the real estate market.And will not come back for a long time.Also having a large body of water tainted with oil near your house doesnt exactly raise the value of your house.So I guess its "California or bust",well on second thought California IS BUST.How in the hell did we get ourselves in mess?And more importantily who is going to lead us out of it .ANYBODY HOME???????????

[babylonsister]

3. If Feinberg is working FOR BP, as has been suggested numerous

times, why would he say this?

:wtf:

[dipsydoodle]

7. Because those "numerous" times

just reiterated the same fairy story. Its the way in which fairy tales spread - at least by those dumb enough to believe them. He was appointed to be to be independant not by BP but by your President.

[katandmoon]

5. "I doubt they are stalling for money" -- BP's strategy has obviously worked, then.

[elleng]

8. 'After today there will be no more business as usual.'

No more Mr. Nice Guy!

[Uncle Joe]

10. Kicked and recommended.

Thanks for the thread, cal.

[Bitwit1234]

11. They are hoping the republicans win in November

AND they can then cancel paying out costs all together. And IF they should that's what will happen. Republicans will side with a big corporation over average Americans again.

[Divine Discontent]

26. now THAT is a great argument! You should make that an OP with some addt'l info about the topic

because you really hit on something there. The gulf region's workers will be ignored if the GOP gets back in power, or also if the current people in charge of making sure they pay out what is owed to people make sure that these people suffer heading up to the election, hoping to sway the region's negative opinion of Obama (which is rather obvious for anyone down here)

[UTUSN]

15. Same FEINBERG who refused to go after bonuses to bailed-out banks executives

**********QUOTE********

http://hosted2.ap.org/txdam/1d938dec0a684376b6aa96349f9c9e98/Article_2010-07-23-US-Pay-Czar/id-093688eb6967437f95e0af422a67e23d

Pay czar will not fight banks on $1.6B in exec pay

WASHINGTON (AP) — For all his tough talk about excessive pay for bankers, the Obama administration's pay czar let the executives go without a fight.

Kenneth Feinberg announced Friday that he would not try to recoup $1.6 billion in compensation given to top executives at bailed-out banks because he thought shaming them was punishment enough.

His decision to go easy on 17 banks that made "ill-advised" payments to their executives is likely to fuel concerns about how he will oversee the $20 billion oil spill compensation fund created by BP.

"I'm not suggesting we should blink or turn the other cheek," Feinberg said later in an interview with The Associated Press. "These 17 companies were singled out for obviously bad behavior. The question is: At what point are you piling on and going beyond what is warranted?"

He could not force the banks to repay the money, but the law instructed him to negotiate with banks to return money if he determined that the pay packages were "contrary to the public interest" — language that he opted not to use.

Still, his leniency is a far cry from the bravado he displayed in the months leading up to his final act as pay czar. In February, he spoke with confidence about his ability to get companies that received taxpayer help to accept less. ....


********UNQUOTE********

[Drale]

23. What did you expect

Did you really expect a big cororation to give up its ill gotten gains without someone holding the perverbial gun to their heads?

[felinetta]

24. What else would you expect from satan?