This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1966. Historical insurance policies issued during operations at this property and through 1986 could fund a cleanup — and recover costs already spent.
This property operates as an active Shell-branded service station at 210 NE 45th Street in Seattle, with three 10,000-gallon gasoline USTs, one 10,000-gallon diesel UST, and two fuel dispenser islands. Two older underground storage tanks — a 1,000-gallon heating oil tank and a 500-gallon waste oil tank — were removed in January 1991, with their installation estimated at approximately 1966. Cleanup under the Voluntary Cleanup Program has included nine vapor extraction wells and annual groundwater monitoring documented from 1997 through 2015, with investigation-derived waste managed under a residual management plan. 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 site traces to underground storage infrastructure installed decades before 1986, when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies carried no effective pollution exclusion in Washington. The extended remediation record — tank removals, vapor extraction, and nearly two decades of groundwater monitoring — represents substantial documented expenditures tied to releases from those pre-1986 operations. Because cleanup is ongoing, historical carriers who issued CGL policies during the site's early operational window may be obligated both to reimburse past remediation costs and to fund the work that remains.
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.
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.
