This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1920. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could fund a cleanup — and recover costs already spent.
This property at the corner of Holly and Broadway Streets in Bellingham operated as a gasoline station — originally a Shell station — first built in the 1920s. The facility was eventually abandoned, and cleanup activities in 1990–1991 included the removal of four underground storage tanks totaling 12,050 gallons of capacity, excavation of hydrocarbon-contaminated soils and groundwater from a pit approximately 50 by 40 feet and up to 15 feet deep, on-site landfarming of contaminated soils, and disposal of PCB-containing ballasts. A follow-up review was conducted in 2011, and cleanup work remains ongoing under the Standard Cleanup program. 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 originated from underground storage tanks that served a gasoline station first built in the 1920s — more than six decades before 1986, when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies still carried no effective pollution exclusion in Washington. The documented remediation costs — tank removals, large-scale soil excavation, groundwater recovery, landfarming, and PCB disposal — were incurred to address releases tied directly to those decades of pre-1986 fueling operations. Historical carriers who issued CGL policies during that operational window may be obligated both to recover past cleanup expenditures and to fund the remediation still 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.
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.
