This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1948. 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.

Petroleum contamination at this site — widespread TPH and BTEX in soil and groundwater, with free product requiring active recovery — originated from underground storage tanks that were in service for decades before 1986. Occurrence-based CGL policies issued to the operators of this station during that pre-1986 window carried no effective pollution exclusion under Washington law and remain enforceable today. Nearly three decades of documented remediation expenditures, with cleanup still ongoing, represent costs that the historical carriers who covered this facility may be obligated both to reimburse and to continue funding.

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.