From the PCB News Herald




BP claims administrator to hold meeting Wednesday

Comments 0
January 14, 2011 06:05:00 PM

FELICIA KITZMILLER / News Herald Writer
PANAMA CITY BEACH — For the second time in six months, Gulf Coast Claims Administrator Kenneth Feinberg will face the public in a town hall meeting in Bay County.
The meeting will be from 11 a.m. to noon Wednesday at Edgewater Beach & Golf Resort Conference Center at 520 Richard Jackson Blvd.
Feinberg will explain the Gulf Coast Claims Facility guidelines for interim, final and “quick pay” claims, Panama City Beach Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Beth Oltman said Friday. The trip is part of a Gulf Coast sweep Feinberg is making to dispel rumors, reassure the public and clarify the process in obtaining a claim check.
Feinberg’s first trip to the region was in August, prior to taking over the claims process that reimburses individuals and businesses that lost money as a result of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. At that time, he promised faster, more equitable payouts to people who suffered financially as a result of the spill.
“We all had certain expectations of him in this area and in the fishing industry,” Oltman said.
Since then, reviews of the new claims process have been mixed. Oltman said she still hears a lot of complaints and confusion from business owners.
“There’s a lot of confusion and it’s an unfortunate and complicated position everyone is in,” she said. “There’s no mathematical equation to figure out who gets what and when.”
In addition to his presentation, Feinberg will be taking questions from the audience and several claims adjusters will be in the back of the room to assist people in making their claims, she said. Seating for the event will be limited to about 300 people.
Anyone with questions or plans to file a claim should go to the Gulf Coast Claims Facility website, gulfcoastclaimsfacility.com, and do some homework before Wednesday to get the most out of the forum, Oltman said.




I believe there is also an 8:30 town hall meeting in Ft. Walton.