This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1960. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could fund a cleanup — and recover costs already spent.
The Binger Automotive Service Station operated on this Olympia property from the 1960s through the mid-1970s, dispensing gasoline — including leaded fuel — through underground storage tanks. The underground gasoline storage tanks were removed prior to 1983, when a bank building was constructed on the property in their place. Soil investigation has since confirmed petroleum hydrocarbon contamination (TPH-G, BTEX, MTBE) and total lead consistent with the site's service station history, and cleanup work remains in progress 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 property traces directly to service station operations conducted entirely before 1986, when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies were the industry norm and carried no effective pollution exclusion in Washington. The detection of total lead in soil samples — a marker of leaded gasoline dispensed before its federal phase-out — anchors the contamination origin firmly within that pre-1986 policy window. Historical carriers who issued CGL coverage to the Binger Automotive Service Station during the 1960s and 1970s may bear obligations both to recover remediation costs already incurred and to fund the cleanup work 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.
