This property has a documented history as a property with a heating oil tank predating 1986. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could recover the cleanup costs already paid.
This commercial property has been in use since the 1920s, with a building constructed on the site in 1947. A 750-gallon underground storage tank that supplied heating oil to the commercial building released petroleum contamination into soil and groundwater at levels exceeding MTCA thresholds. In 2002, the UST was excavated and removed along with approximately 118 tons of petroleum-contaminated soil under the Voluntary Cleanup Program. Subsequent remediation included installation of three groundwater monitoring wells, multi-year groundwater monitoring, implementation of an environmental covenant, and maintenance of an asphalt cap under an operations and maintenance plan, after which the site received a No Further Action determination. 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.
The heating oil UST at this property served a commercial building operating on the site since the 1920s, placing both the tank's installation and the contamination it caused well 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. The remediation costs documented here — UST excavation and disposal, removal of 118 tons of contaminated soil, monitoring well installation, years of groundwater monitoring, and ongoing covenant and cap maintenance obligations — represent expenditures that historical carriers may be obligated to recover.
Restorical's role is to locate viable historical policies, determine whether a successful cost recovery claim is possible, and assist our clients and their legal counsel to obtain insurance coverage for costs already incurred. Restorical's forensic accounting team works to re-establish and document past cleanup expenditures, ensuring the strongest possible basis for recovery.
Recovering Costs from an Older Cleanup
If this site reached No Further Action years ago, the original cleanup expenditures may be difficult to reconstruct. Restorical's forensic accounting team specializes in re-establishing and documenting past cleanup costs — even decades later — to build the strongest possible basis for an insurance recovery claim.
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.
