This property has a documented history as a industrial and manufacturing facility going back to 1946. Historical insurance policies issued during operations at this property and through 1986 could fund a cleanup — and recover costs already spent.
This property has been in industrial use since the late 1940s, with operations evolving from sand and gravel mining to asphalt production beginning in 1971, waste stockpiling from 1981, and permitted thermal desorption of petroleum-contaminated soil. A WSDOT mobile asphalt testing laboratory on site also used trichloroethylene (TCE). Cleanup under the Voluntary Cleanup Program has included excavation of 7,985 tons of contaminated soil, disposal of 80,800 gallons of wastewater, and operation of an Air Sparging/Soil Vapor Extraction system from 2010 to 2014, with groundwater monitoring ongoing since 2008. The property remains in active industrial use for recycling imported asphalt and concrete debris and producing hot- and cold-mix asphalt. That history could support an insurance cost recovery claim against carriers who issued insurance policies 40+ years ago.
Why Historical Insurance Policies May Be Accessible
Pre-1986 Commercial General Liability (CGL) policies were occurrence-based and did not contain an effective pollution exclusion in Washington. If contamination occurred while those policies were active, those historical insurance carriers may still have a legal obligation to fund the cleanup costs, even if the business closed or the property changed hands.
Contamination at this site — diesel- and oil-range petroleum hydrocarbons, carcinogenic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, chlorinated volatile organic compounds including TCE, arsenic, and lead — traces to industrial operations that began decades before 1986. Occurrence-based CGL policies issued to operators during that pre-1986 window carried no effective pollution exclusion under Washington law and remain enforceable today. With substantial remediation costs already incurred and long-term monitoring and institutional controls still ahead, historical carriers who covered this facility during the originating operations may be obligated both to reimburse past cleanup expenditures and to fund the remaining work.
Restorical's role is to locate viable historical policies, determine whether a successful coverage claim is possible, and assist our clients and their legal counsel to obtain insurance coverage. Restorical then manages the claim, including accounting, to ensure the cleanup is funded in a timely manner.
What We Look For
- Historical insurance policies (pre-1986)
- Policy numbers, carrier names, and coverage periods
- Connection between contamination timing and policy period
- Evidence linking cleanup obligation to insured activity
What We Deliver
- Historical Coverage Chart
- Trigger Analysis & Property/Policy Nexus
- Coverage strategy with recommendations
- Insurance funding for your remediation
- Claims Management & Forensic Accounting
The Restorical Proven Process
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Contact UsThis analysis is preliminary and based on publicly available records. Restorical Research is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice.
