This property has a documented history as a industrial and manufacturing facility going back to 1967. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could recover the cleanup costs already paid.
This property served as the Franz Bakery's regional delivery vehicle maintenance facility, with four truck repair bays and underground storage tanks holding gasoline and diesel fuel. Tank installations dating to approximately 1967 and 1973 were removed in 1992 and 1998, along with a hydraulic hoist and pump island fueling system. Cleanup under the Voluntary Cleanup Program spanned from 1992 to 2002 and included excavation of approximately 1,192 tons of petroleum-contaminated soil, operation of a Soil Vapor Extraction system from 2001 to 2002, and installation of groundwater monitoring wells. The site has 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.
Petroleum contamination at this property originated from underground storage tanks and vehicle maintenance operations that were in place by the late 1960s — nearly two decades before occurrence-based CGL policies ceased covering pollution claims in 1986. A decade of documented remediation expenditures, including tank removals, large-scale soil excavation, and vapor extraction, were incurred to address releases tied directly to those pre-1986 operations. Historical carriers who issued CGL policies during the facility's operational window may still be obligated to recover those cleanup costs.
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.
