This property has a documented history as a landfill going back to 1962. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations 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.

Contamination at this site — volatile organic compounds, landfill gas, and leachate — is the direct product of nearly three decades of municipal waste disposal that began in 1962, more than two decades before occurrence-based CGL policies ceased covering pollution claims. The remediation expenditures already incurred for landfill closure, engineered cover systems, gas extraction, vapor treatment, and long-term monitoring represent substantial costs tied to operations well within the pre-1986 policy window. With performance monitoring ongoing and future remedial costs yet to be determined, historical carriers who issued CGL policies during the landfill's operating years may be obligated both to recover past cleanup expenditures and to fund the work that remains.

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.