This property has a documented history as a industrial and manufacturing facility going back to 1900. 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.

Wood treating operations at this property began around the turn of the twentieth century, placing the contamination's origin decades before 1986, when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies still carried no effective pollution exclusion in Washington. The scope of documented remediation here — a high-capacity groundwater treatment plant, multiple thermal and chemical treatment technologies, solidification, and ongoing monitoring across a nearly 50-acre industrial waterfront — reflects substantial and continuing expenditures tied directly to those historical operations. Historical carriers who issued CGL policies during the pre-1986 operational window may be obligated both to recover costs already incurred and to fund remediation that remains ongoing.

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.