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 recover the cleanup costs already paid.

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 former Chevron station originated from underground storage tanks estimated to have been installed around 1966 — two full decades before occurrence-based CGL policies gave way to claims-made forms with pollution exclusions. The documented remediation expenditures here — tank closures, tank removal, and years of groundwater monitoring and sampling — were incurred to address releases directly tied to those pre-1986 fueling operations. Historical carriers who issued CGL policies during that operational window may still be obligated to cover those cleanup costs.

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.