This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station 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 traces to underground storage tanks that were in service decades before 1986, when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies carried no effective pollution exclusion in Washington. Years of documented remediation expenditures — tank decommissioning, soil removal, well installation, and over a decade of groundwater monitoring under the Voluntary Cleanup Program — represent costs tied directly to those pre-1986 operations. Historical carriers who issued CGL policies while the tanks were active may be obligated both to recover past cleanup costs and to fund the monitoring work that remains ahead.

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.