This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station predating 1986. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could recover the cleanup costs already paid.
Skyline Marina in Anacortes operated fuel dispensing infrastructure — including a fuel pump and underground tank vault — that released gasoline, diesel-range petroleum hydrocarbons, and benzene into site soils. Remedial excavations were conducted in 1990 and 2005 under the Voluntary Cleanup Program, spanning at least fifteen years of remediation activity. Ecology reviewed the site's investigation and groundwater monitoring reports and issued a No Further Action determination. 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 fuel contamination at this marina originated from tank and pump operations that predate 1986, as confirmed by the need for remedial excavation as early as 1990 and a 1991 Environmental Property Audit documenting historical conditions. Occurrence-based CGL policies in effect during those pre-1986 fueling operations carried no effective pollution exclusion under Washington law. Fifteen years of documented remediation costs — two rounds of excavation, investigation, and groundwater monitoring — represent expenditures that historical carriers who covered the marina during its fuel-dispensing operations may still be obligated to reimburse.
Restorical's role is to locate viable historical policies, determine whether a successful cost recovery claim is possible, and assist our clients and their legal counsel to obtain insurance coverage for costs already incurred. Restorical's forensic accounting team works to re-establish and document past cleanup expenditures, ensuring the strongest possible basis for recovery.
Recovering Costs from an Older Cleanup
If this site reached No Further Action years ago, the original cleanup expenditures may be difficult to reconstruct. Restorical's forensic accounting team specializes in re-establishing and documenting past cleanup costs — even decades later — to build the strongest possible basis for an insurance recovery claim.
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.