BP Compensates Around $4 Billion To Oil Spill Victims And Says That There Are Many Fraudulent Claims

BP (LON:BP), the giant energy company, is fighting claims for compensation from the 2010 oil spill that the energy company says are fraudulent, as $4 billion has so far been paid back.

The company is waiting for an appeal by U.S. federal courts to change the compensation system to oil spill victims, the wallstreetcheatsheet.com reported.

In April 2012 the company agreed to compensate affected businesses and families. BP set aside $8.2 billion to cover the payments, but because of the fraudulent claims, that amount has increased.

The energy company says false and excessive claims are placing its finances at risk and could ultimately leave it vulnerable to takeover.

BP's complaint reportedly cites a construction company 200 miles away from Alabama's coast that it had to pay $9.7 million, even though 2010 was the claimant's best construction year on record. BP says the current system allows businesses to compare earnings before and after the spill in ways that inflate losses, according to the U.K.'s Independent.

The April 20, 2010, explosion from its Deepwater Horizon well off the coast of Louisiana killed 11 workers, released an estimated 4 million barrels of oil into the Gulf, and caused widespread environmental damage. The disaster also crippled the fishing and seafood industry and regional tourism.

In its first-quarter results published in April, BP warned that compensation may be considerably higher than the billions it originally set aside.