This property has a documented history as a dry cleaning facility going back to 1970. 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.

PCE-based dry cleaning operations at this site ran from 1970 through 1995, spanning more than fifteen years of pre-1986 activity during which occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies carried no effective pollution exclusion. The slow solvent migration into soil and groundwater documented here is precisely the type of gradual release those policies were designed to cover. The remediation trail — phased excavation, an engineered containment cap, active treatment infrastructure, and decades of long-term monitoring — represents substantial cleanup expenditures that historical carriers whose policies covered operations during the pre-1986 window may be obligated to fund.

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.