According to the Press Association, the 13,000 Louisiana residents had filed compensation claims after the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.

The personal details include names, addresses, phone numbers and social security numbers. BP spokesman Curtis Thomas said it had sent letters to the 13,000 people whose data was stored on the computer, notifying them about the potential data security breach and offering to pay for their credit to be monitored.

He also confirmed that the laptop was password-protected, but the information was not encrypted and included a spreadsheet of claimants' names, social security numbers, phone numbers and addresses. He also said that there was no evidence that claimants' personal information had been misused.

The employee lost the laptop on 1st March during 'routine business travel', but Thomas did not elaborate on the circumstances. "We're committed to the people of the Gulf Coast states affected by the Deepwater Horizon accident and spill, and we deeply regret that this occurred," he said.

For more information call 0845 6171819.