This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station predating 1986. 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.

Fuel dispensing at this site was underway well before 1957 — placing decades of gasoline and waste oil UST operations squarely within the period when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies carried no effective pollution exclusion. The documented remediation costs here — five tank removals, thousands of cubic yards of soil excavation, and an ongoing groundwater monitoring program — trace directly to contamination that originated during those pre-1986 operations. Historical CGL carriers whose policies were in force during the gas station's long operating window may be obligated both to fund the continuing cleanup and to recover expenditures already incurred.

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.