This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station predating 1986. Historical insurance policies issued during operations at this property 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.

Petroleum contamination at this site traces to underground storage tanks that were in operation before 1986 — a timeline confirmed by the 1987 UST removal and the persistent detection of total lead in groundwater, a hallmark of leaded gasoline that was largely phased out before that date. Occurrence-based CGL policies issued to the operator during those pre-1986 years carried no effective pollution exclusion under Washington law. The documented remediation expenditures — tank removals, well installations, decades of groundwater extraction and monitoring — represent costs the historical carriers may be obligated both to recover and to continue funding as cleanup 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.