This property has a documented history as a public works and maintenance facility predating 1986. Historical insurance policies issued during operations at this property and through 1986 could fund a cleanup — and recover costs already spent.

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 diesel contamination at this site traces to underground storage tanks that were designated as historic at their 1988 closure, placing their active service squarely in the era when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies were still the industry norm and carried no effective pollution exclusion. A municipal operator running fuel infrastructure during that pre-1986 window would routinely have held such coverage. The documented remediation costs here — UST removal, excavation of over 340 tons of impacted soil, dewatering operations, and multi-year groundwater monitoring — represent the kind of expenditures that historical carriers may be obligated both to recover and to fund going forward.

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.