BP  says the lawyer administering the compensation fund is misinterpreting the terms of the agreement and making pay-outs that are too generous. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-21814732 Last year BP agreed to pay compensation to around 100,000 people and companies – including fishermen and restaurant owners – who claimed the oil spill had harmed their livelihoods or their health following the The Deepwater Horizon disaster which released an estimated four million barrels of oil into the Gulf and caused an explosion on the offshore rig that killed 11 workers and ruptured a deep-sea well head, which took 84 days to seal. BP set aside $7.8bn (£5.2bn) when it agreed to pay compensation in 2012, but it now expects a much higher total.Claimants say BP had “undervalued the settlement and underestimated the number of people and businesses that qualify under the objective formulas that BP agreed to”.There is a separate trial of BP and other companies on civil charges over the oil spill, which was one of the worst in US history, where BP could face a further huge fine, despite having already agreed in 2012 to pay $4.5bn to settle criminal charges.