This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1967. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could recover the cleanup costs already paid.
This property operated as the Marves Union Oil gas station, with four underground storage tanks — two for gasoline, one for heating oil, and one for waste oil — along with associated piping. Between 1990 and 1992, all four USTs and their piping were removed, approximately 600 cubic yards of petroleum-contaminated soil were excavated and transported for off-site land farming, and roughly 150 gallons of contaminated groundwater were purged and disposed of off-site. Post-excavation confirmation samples came in below MTCA cleanup levels, and the site achieved No Further Action status. 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 underground storage tanks at this site are estimated to have been installed around 1967, placing nearly two decades of fuel-dispensing operations squarely within the era when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies carried no effective pollution exclusion. The petroleum release that triggered cleanup originated from those pre-1986 tanks and operations. Documented remediation expenditures — removal of four USTs, excavation of 600 cubic yards of contaminated soil, groundwater recovery, and off-site disposal — represent costs that historical carriers whose CGL policies were in force during the station's operational window may still be obligated to cover.
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.
Recovering Costs from an Older Cleanup
If this site reached No Further Action years ago, the original cleanup expenditures may be difficult to reconstruct. Restorical's forensic accounting team specializes in re-establishing and documenting past cleanup costs — even decades later — to build the strongest possible basis for an insurance recovery claim.
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.