This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1930. 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 petroleum service station since at least 1930, most recently as a BP gasoline station before conversion to a Chevron station. The site supported five underground storage tanks — two 10,000-gallon and one 6,000-gallon gasoline USTs, one 4,000-gallon diesel UST, and one 500-gallon waste oil UST — along with two dispenser islands. In 1997, the waste oil UST was removed and several tons of petroleum-contaminated soil were excavated and replaced with clean fill. Since 2002, the site has been enrolled in the Voluntary Cleanup Program, with multiple subsurface investigations, soil and indoor air sampling events, and ongoing discussions regarding environmental covenants for residual contamination. 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 to underground storage tanks that were installed and operated decades before 1986, with station operations documented as far back as 1930. Occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies issued to the operators during that long pre-1986 window carried no effective pollution exclusion under Washington law and remain enforceable today. More than two decades of remediation activity — tank removal, soil excavation, repeated subsurface investigations, indoor air monitoring, and environmental covenant negotiations — represent both costs already incurred and obligations still accruing that historical carriers may be required to fund.
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.