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 fund a cleanup — and recover costs already spent.
This property historically operated as a gasoline fuel service station, with two 12,000-gallon underground storage tanks dispensing unleaded gasoline at 7801 NE Highway 99 in Vancouver. Cleanup under the Standard Cleanup program has included excavation and removal of both USTs, pumping of petroleum-affected water from the excavation pit, and ongoing corrective action obligations spanning from at least 1999 through 2017 and likely continuing. Remediation work at the site remains in progress. 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 petroleum contamination at this property originated from underground gasoline storage tanks that served a fuel service station operating well before 1986, when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies carried no effective pollution exclusion in Washington. The site's documented remediation costs — tank removal, soil excavation, water recovery, and nearly two decades of corrective action — represent expenditures that historical carriers who issued CGL policies during the station's pre-1986 operational window may be obligated both to reimburse and to fund going forward as cleanup continues.
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.