This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1955. 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 retail fuel service and vehicle service station from 1955 to 1966, with at least three gasoline and diesel underground storage tanks, a waste oil UST, a heating oil UST, and a vehicle service hoist. A fueling yard subsequently operated on the site from 1979 to 1985. Cleanup under the Voluntary Cleanup Program has included excavation of 300 to 400 cubic yards of petroleum-impacted soil in 1997, operation of an air sparging and soil vapor extraction system from 2001 to 2002 that recovered 11 pounds of benzene and 80 pounds of gasoline, and multi-year groundwater monitoring from 1999 through 2006. Cleanup work is 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.
Petroleum contamination at this site traces directly to underground storage tanks installed and operated beginning in 1955 — more than three decades before occurrence-based CGL policies gave way to claims-made forms with pollution exclusions. A second phase of fueling operations from 1979 to 1985 falls within that same pre-1986 coverage window. The documented remediation expenditures — large-scale soil excavation, vapor extraction, and years of groundwater monitoring — represent cleanup costs that historical carriers who issued CGL policies during either operational period may be obligated both to recover 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.