The US Attorney General’s Office announced yesterday that it had assessed a fine of $373 million against oil firm BP. This includes a fine of $ 50 million against the firm for a 2005 refinery explosion that killed 15 people and injured 170 more. The fine for the explosion was only for the company’s one-time violation of the Clean Air Act, and does not include any workers’ compensation settlements or wrongful death lawsuits, which are currently going forward. The government has not raised any charges on the unsafe practices at the plant, despite the fact that secret company memos show several managers knew about the risk.
The company was fined much more stringently in the case of a fraud to manipulate propane prices by four BP employees. Fines against the company in this case came to a total of $ 303 million.
In a similar set of bad news, the company reported that production difficulties had seriously affected its profits this year, decreasing its quarterly profit from July through September were down to $3.88 billion, compared to profits of $6.88 billion last year, partly as a result of increased safety costs following the 2005 blast.
If you or someone you love has been hurt or killed working under unsafe conditions while the company posts huge profits, contact the Law Offices of Barry G. Doyle, P.C, a Chicago personal injury lawyer who will discuss your case during a free initial consultation.
