This property has a documented history as a dry cleaning facility going back to 1965. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could recover the cleanup costs already paid.
This property housed a dry cleaning business from circa 1965 through approximately 1997, during which tetrachloroethylene (PCE) was used in the dry cleaning machinery and process. Soil and groundwater contamination at the site is attributed to the use and storage of PCE associated with those historical dry cleaning operations. Under the Voluntary Cleanup Program, cleanup planning evaluated multiple remediation alternatives — including soil vapor extraction, sub-slab depressurization, and in-situ treatments — with the preferred remedy of sub-slab depressurization and an environmental covenant selected at an estimated cost of $82,838. The site has received a No Further Action determination from Ecology. 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.
PCE contamination at this property traces to dry cleaning operations that began in 1965 and ran for over three decades through 1997, with the contaminating releases originating well before 1986 when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies still lacked effective pollution exclusions. The slow, process-related PCE release characteristic of dry cleaning operations is precisely the type of gradual occurrence those pre-1986 policies were written to address. The documented investigation and remediation expenditures — from alternatives analysis through the selected sub-slab depressurization remedy — represent costs tied directly to the contamination that arose during the years when historical CGL carriers were on the risk.
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.
