Compensation fund aims to help 'small people' while blocking the fraudsters, but it is the lawyers who will benefit most

The Mimosa Dancing Girls strip joint on the edge of New Orleans was probably not what BP chairman Carl-Henric Svanberg had in mind when he promised last week that the company would look after the "small people" affected by the Gulf oil spill. But then every day seems to be full of unpleasant surprises for BP.

The Mimosa's owners have just filed a claim for compensation because the fishermen who make up their clientele can no longer afford to frequent the club.

BP says that most of the 1,500 claims it is handling across the Gulf each day are from those involved in the fishing industry, unable to work because of the fishing ban. But at BP's New Orleans claims centre, officials say that fishermen no longer make up the bulk of the claimants they see. As well as strip-joint owners, in recent days restaurant waitresses, dock workers, plumbers and electricians have all been through the door.

Like the gloops of brown oil that are spreading across the Gulf of Mexico, the economic ripple effects of the disaster are widening. Tourism and the fishing industry are big earners in the region and have been severely hit, but so too have all the other workers who make a living from their custom.

Last week BP, under pressure from the White House, agreed to set up a $20bn independently administered fund to pay for the clean-up and meet compensation claims. Lawyers say that $20bn will not be enough, and this weekend Kenneth Feinberg, the man appointed by US President Barack Obama to run it, warned BP that it would have to pay out more if necessary.

The pressure increased still further after one of BP's partners on the ill-fated drilling operation which caused the disaster accused the company of "gross negligence". Anadarko said that financial responsibility to meet compensation claims lay squarely with BP.

Feinberg is set to take control of the 33 claims centres BP administers around the Gulf. The size and number of the payouts will almost certainly increase as a result.

Frustration is mounting over BP's efforts to date. It only increased yesterday after BP confirmed that its chief executive, Tony Hayward, spent the first weekend after his testimony to Congress watching a yacht race at the Isle of Wight. As the public vented their anger on Twitter and Facebook, a BP spokesman defended Hayward, saying he took a break from overseeing efforts to stem the oil spill so he could watch his 52-foot yacht "Bob" take part. "He's spending a few hours with his family at a weekend. I'm sure that everyone would understand that," he added.

A report from a US House of Representatives committee estimated that, as of Tuesday last week, BP had paid just $71m out of an estimated $600m in outstanding compensation demands.

BP says that it has not refused any claim where the right documentation is provided. Darryl Willis, BP's head of the claims operation for the Gulf of Mexico, admitted to the Observer that about 7,000 applications – half those currently in the system – have been suspended until claimants can come up with documents which prove that the Gulf spill has affected their livelihoods.

Many of the fishermen are poor Vietnamese, who speak no English, and are paid cash in hand. Willis says BP is flexible in seeking proof of loss of income, for example asking for receipts for the fish they have sold in the past instead of insisting on payslips they don't have. He added that claims centres are "biased" towards paying out claims rather than withholding payment. But in the reception of the New Orleans centre, a sign – also translated into Vietnamese – has a stark message for those queuing up: "BP's policy is no fraud!"

Boat captains in particular have criticised BP for scrimping. Typically they bring in $20,000 a month at this time of year, but last month only received $5,000 compensation cheques for not being able to fish because of the Gulf ban. In some cases BP has agreed to bolster this, but only by as much as $2,000, Willis said.

Willis said that there were 35 different categories of claimant, mostly associated with the fishing industry. "The further removed you are from the fishing industry, this will take more work to substantiate," he admitted. He cites the example of a gardener in Alabama who received a payout because most of his customers are fishermen who have time to tend to their gardens themselves now they aren't working.

Local attorney Camilo K Salas III said that many people were turning to lawyers to pursue their claims where BP had asked for documentation that is impossible to present. Taxi drivers in New Orleans have clubbed together to hire an attorney to pursue damages against BP for lost earnings. Their attorney wants to wait a few months to see if tourism numbers fall further, so he can file a bigger claim for damages. Lawyers seem to be the biggest beneficiaries of the disaster and are pouring into places like New Orleans to pick up work.

Getting a claims process up and running so soon after the accident inevitably led to mistakes. In New Orleans, BP originally based its centre in the offices of a local Vietnamese community group. But this alienated another Vietnamese faction, who refused to show up, and BP moved its centre.

Back at the new centre on Michoud Boulevard, one of the BP officials said that a lot of the claimants were very emotional. Remaining compassionate can be difficult, he admitted. "We're conscious that after a while you become anaesthetised to the plight of people."