This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1966. 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 petroleum contamination here — gasoline and heavy oil — originated from a filling station that operated from 1966 to 1973, placing Mobil Oil's entire operational window squarely within the era when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies carried no effective pollution exclusion. The documented remediation expenditures — large-scale soil excavation, chemical treatment, re-asphalting, and an ongoing groundwater monitoring program — represent costs that historical carriers who issued CGL policies during that 1966–1973 window may be obligated both to recover and to fund as monitoring continues.

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.