BP is investigating reports that its claims process, in which thousands of business owners affected by the oil spill have applied for damages, has been the target of scam artists.
In some instances, people have posed as fishermen to receive checks from BP. In others, swindlers masquerading as BP employees have tried to convince Gulf Coast residents to give them personal financial information.
The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries first alerted BP of the possible fraud.
It reported that commercial fishing license applications spiked after the April 20 Deepwater Horizon oil-rig explosion. According to the agency’s law enforcement division, 2,200 licenses were sold after the blast, a 60 percent increase compared to the same period last year, despite the closure of federal fishing waters in the Gulf of Mexico following the oil spill.
A commercial fishing license is the main document needed to qualify for a BP claim. So far, BP has approved 103,900 payments totaling $319 million.
BP’s claims process system has been refined with an eye toward making the process harder for cheaters.
Allen Carpenter, the corporate compliance manager for Worley Catastrophe Response, BP’s subcontractor that is handling claims in the area, suspects that at least 10 percent of the claims filed since the beginning of the disaster are probably fraudulent.
Mr. Worley said the company is notifying its claims adjusters to be on the lookout for fraud.
The company has the authority to approve payments in $5,000 increments and any payment above that amount requires direct approval from BP.
Ken Feinberg, a government-appointed administrator who will control the BP Deepwater Horizon Disaster Victim Compensation Fund, will take over the claims process on Aug. 23.
