This property has a documented history as a property with a heating oil tank predating 1986. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could recover the cleanup costs already paid.
The Geiger Heights Housing Area was a residential development in Spokane where each unit was heated by No. 2 fuel oil stored in 300-gallon single-walled steel underground storage tanks. In 1994, all 131 USTs were removed and heating was converted to natural gas; nine of those tanks were confirmed to have leaked, prompting initial removal of approximately 600 cubic yards of petroleum-impacted soil. Remediation under the Voluntary Cleanup Program continued from 1992 through 2015, ultimately encompassing excavation of 1,755 cubic yards of contaminated soil, monitoring well installation, and natural attenuation to address residual groundwater impacts. The site has since received a No Further Action determination. 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.
The petroleum releases here originated from single-walled steel residential heating oil tanks that were installed and operated for decades before 1986, when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies had no effective pollution exclusion. Nine of those tanks leaked fuel oil into soil and groundwater — a slow, continuous release of exactly the type those pre-1986 policies were written to cover. The documented remediation expenditures spanning more than twenty years — UST removals, large-scale soil excavation, groundwater monitoring, and natural attenuation — represent costs that historical carriers who issued CGL policies during the tanks' operational years may still be obligated to recover.
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.
