National Incident Commander Wants More Transparent BP Claims Process

U.S. Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen, national incident commander for the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, has told British Petroleum America CEO Tony Hayward in a letter that the oil giant needs to give the National Incident Command [NIC] better access to its claims payment process and records.

"We need additional information to assess how well the process is meeting the critical needs of individuals, businesses and families whose livelihoods are being impacted by the spill," Allen said in his letter, dated yesterday. "The NIC and our state counterparts have made several requests for additional information which we have not received,"

The NIC needs figures like claim numbers and the last four digits of Social Security numbers to track the claims process, Allen said. The NIC is meeting with BP's claims department today to talk about access to its process.