This property has a documented history as a industrial and manufacturing facility going back to 1950. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations 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 contamination at this site traces to underground storage tanks installed in the early 1960s and operated through the pre-1986 era — including a 12,000-gallon UST for leaded gasoline, a fuel type whose presence alone dates the release to decades before modern pollution exclusions took hold. The release mechanism was chronic: slow leakage from piping and fittings accumulated over years of heavy freight terminal operations, precisely the gradual, ongoing pollution that occurrence-based CGL policies issued during that window were designed to address. Historical carriers whose policies covered United Motor Freight during the 1960s through the early 1980s may still bear obligation for the documented remediation expenditures — tank removals, soil excavation, groundwater monitoring, and the ongoing bioremediation program.

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.