Japan Press Weekly

Tweet

2012 August 29 - September 4 [NUCLEAR CRISIS]

TEPCO only pays \40,000 out of \200 mil in claims for nuclear accident damage

As of August 28, Tokyo Electric Power Company agreed to pay only about 40,000 yen out of about 216 million yen in claims for nuclear accident damages filed by individuals and corporations in disaster-affected Miyagi Prefecture.

Representing Miyagi’s 15 individuals and corporations who are suffering from radioactive contamination and the harmful rumors caused by the Fukushima nuclear accident, a lawyers’ group at the end of June submitted to the company claims for damages, representing nuclear accident victims within the prefecture

TEPCO, however, dismissed 5 out of 15 claims by saying that the claims fail to fall under any of the categories of the government’s interim guideline for compensation payments. TEPCO requested the lawyers’ group to provide additional information for 9 claims.

The utility only accepted one claim in which a trout farmer requested about 39,270 yen for the cost of inspecting radiation levels of trout.

Regarding a compensation request made by a firewood supply business owner who experienced a business slump because mountains in Miyagi are contaminated with radiation, TEPCO in its reply to the request said that the owner can buy firewood produced from mountains in West Japan areas through the Internet.

Head of the lawyers’ group Kikuchi Osamu said, “Without investigating the actual situation, the power company gives the pat answer that our claims do not fulfill the interim guideline. This is an extremely unreasonable attitude. We will consider taking further legal action.”

The lawyers’ group on August 28 filed with TEPCO another 14 claims seeking about 218 million yen in compensation.