Many businesses in Maryland, including restaurants, seafood distributors, and seafood wholesalers are beginning to feel the economic impact of the Gulf Oil Spill. Seafood prices are already on the rise, and many small businesses are hesitant to pass these price increases on to their customers. What this means is that many businesses in Maryland are suffering lost profits as a result of the BP Gulf Oil Spill in Louisiana.

Another aspect of the BP Oil spill’s impact on Maryland food industry is that customers are hesitant to order shrimp, oysters and other seafood that is known to originate from the Gulf of Mexico. This decreased supply, coupled with the price increases, is leading to lost revenue and lost profits for those involved in the Maryland seafood industry. Goldberg Finnegan, LLC is representing businesses and restaurants in these cases – BP oil compensation claims, and we will assist your business in documenting its losses and making a proper claim with the BP Oil Compensation Fund.

Take the example of a restaurant in Bethesda, Maryland that serves seafood and other delicacies:

First of all, many people are not eating seafood because they are afraid it is tainted from the oil in the Gulf of Mexico. Therefore, customers of that Maryland restaurant may not dine there, and instead will eat at a burger joint down the street that does not serve seafood. This is one aspect of the lost revenue/profits that Maryland restaurants have as a direct result of the BP Oil Spill.

Then there is the issue of the cost of seafood. The cost of seafood is already on the rise. The price of crab and shrimp has apparently increased significantly in the past month or so (despite the fact that crabs in the Chesapeake Bay are plentiful this season). As the price of seafood goes up because of the Gulf Oil Spill, many Maryland restaurants are going to have to decide whether to pass the price increases on to their customers, or to absorb the cost.

Either way, the result is going to be a smaller profit margin and a lost business opportunity. Maryland Sushi restaurants are also impacted by the Gulf Oil Spill. We currently represent over 100 clients from Louisiana and Maryland who have been impacted by the BP Gulf Oil Spill. These clients include charter boat operators, commercial fishermen, oystermen, shrimpers and small businesses.

Many larger stores that sell seafood (e.g. supermarkets) have opted to cease selling Gulf Shrimp out of fear. This impacts a lot of people including those seafood salesmen who sell the shrimp. It is also getting harder and harder to get new seafood from the Gulf of Mexico, and many are having to opt for Latin American seafood which is less desirable from the standpoint of most Maryland consumers.

My advice to Maryland businesses impacted by the BP Gulf Oils Spill: Keep meticulous records of any lost revenue and lost profits. Documentation is going to be very important. Keep track of customer comments and questions about the quality of the seafood, and their concerns about whether it is tainted. We believe that time is of the essence. While $20 Billion Dollars sounds like a lot of money, the scope of this disaster is unprecedented, and we think it is important to make a claim as soon as possible to be sure that compensation is received before resources are depleted.

Call us for a free consultation about what we can do for your business. We will represent your business against BP and other responsible parties on a contingency fee basis (meaning no attorney fee unless there is a recovery). As you may be aware, BP is in the process of setting up a $20 Billion Dollar Fund that claims can be made against. This is going to be administered by Kenneth Feinberg, an attorney who previously handled the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund.

Our law firm represented numerous victims in their claims against the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund, and we feel that we know what the decision makers are going to be looking for when deciding on the amounts of awards from this fund. It is our understanding that if your Maryland business makes a claim against this fund, once the award amount is determined, your business will have to make a choice and either accept the award and sign a release, or reject the award and pursue the claim in Court. We are interested in hearing about how your Maryland business has been impacted by the Gulf Oil Spill. Please call (888) 213-8140 for more information.