This property has a documented history as a industrial and manufacturing facility 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.

The petroleum contamination at this site originated from underground storage tanks that stored gasoline, fuel oil, and waste oil during industrial dairy operations predating 1986 — the period when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies carried no effective pollution exclusion in Washington. The detection of EDB, a chemical marker of pre-1986 leaded gasoline, confirms that the releases occurred squarely within the CGL coverage window. Documented remediation expenditures — tank removals, large-scale soil excavation, dewatering, and monitoring-well infrastructure — represent costs that historical carriers who insured the dairy's operations may be obligated both to reimburse and to fund as cleanup 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.