This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1966. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could fund a cleanup — and recover costs already spent.
This property operated as a Shell-branded gasoline service station with multiple underground storage tanks — two 4,000-gallon, one 6,000-gallon, and one 8,000-gallon gasoline UST, plus heating oil and waste oil tanks. Investigations in 1988 and 1989 identified petroleum hydrocarbon contamination (TPH and BTEX) in soil near the former USTs, and surface soil samples collected in 1991 revealed elevated levels of total lead consistent with decades of leaded gasoline use. Cleanup under the Voluntary Cleanup Program has included soil excavation in 1988, station building demolition in 1991, operation of a soil vapor extraction system from 1991 to 1992 that volatilized 125 pounds of hydrocarbons and remediated perched groundwater, well abandonment in 2003, and investigation-derived waste disposal in 2013. Work at the site remains ongoing. 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.
The presence of total lead in surface soil — a signature of leaded gasoline, phased out of commercial sale by the mid-1980s — places contaminating operations at this station squarely in the era when occurrence-based CGL policies carried no effective pollution exclusion in Washington. Applying standard tank lifecycle assumptions, the USTs were likely installed by the mid-1960s, extending the relevant policy window back two decades before 1986. The documented remediation expenditures spanning from 1988 through at least 2013 — excavation, vapor extraction, well abandonment, and waste disposal — represent costs that historical carriers who covered this station during its pre-1986 operating years may be obligated to reimburse and to fund going forward.
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.