This property has a documented history as a industrial and manufacturing facility going back to 1944. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could recover the cleanup costs already paid.
Wymans Marina & Wholesale Supply operated as a boat servicing and maintenance facility at this Anacortes waterfront property from 1944 through 1998, with underground fuel storage tanks and marine infrastructure — creosote-treated pilings, floating docks, and fueling equipment — supporting its marine industry operations. Cleanup under the Voluntary Cleanup Program included removal of four USTs and approximately 300 cubic yards and 417 tons of contaminated soil in 1998, followed by a second phase in 2014 that removed an additional 27,670 tons of soil and disposed of 8,500 gallons of collected water off-site. The in-water cleanup also involved full removal of 268 creosote-treated pilings, a gangway, three floating docks, and miscellaneous fueling equipment. The site has since reached No Further Action status. 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.
Marine operations at this property began in 1944 — more than four decades before 1986 — generating a contamination profile that spans petroleum hydrocarbons from fuel storage, metals, pesticides including 4,4-DDD, and tributyltin (TBT) from anti-fouling boat paints, each tied to activities conducted during the era when occurrence-based CGL policies carried no effective pollution exclusion. The scope of documented remediation across two distinct cleanup phases — nearly 28,000 total tons of soil removed, in-water structure removal, and off-site water disposal — reflects the magnitude of liability attributable to those pre-1986 operations. Historical carriers who issued CGL policies to the operators during that decades-long window may still be obligated to recover those expenditures.
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.
