This property has a documented history as a industrial and manufacturing facility going back to 1947. 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.

Gasoline contamination at this site originated from fueling and maintenance operations supporting industrial activities that began decades before 1986 — the UST removed in 1992 was likely installed around 1967 based on its service life, squarely within the era of occurrence-based CGL policies with no effective pollution exclusion. The documented remediation expenditures — tank removal, soil excavation, over-excavation of residual areas, and multi-year groundwater monitoring — represent costs tied to releases from those pre-1986 operations. Historical carriers who covered the industrial operators during that window may be obligated both to reimburse past cleanup costs and to fund the remaining work.

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.