This property has a documented history as a dry cleaning facility going back to 1976. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could fund a cleanup.

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 dry cleaning operations that caused this contamination were conducted in a facility built in 1976 — a full decade before occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies began incorporating effective pollution exclusions. PCE and its chlorinated breakdown products are characteristic of the slow, ongoing subsurface releases that pre-1986 CGL policies were designed to cover. The excavation costs, waste disposal, and the groundwater monitoring program now being structured represent exactly the remediation expenditures that historical carriers whose policies were in force during those dry cleaning operations 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.