This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station predating 1986. 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.

Leaded-gasoline residues in the groundwater tie the contamination at ARCO 5236 directly to fueling operations conducted during the era when occurrence-based CGL policies were standard — policies issued to ARCO and its predecessors covering this station's daily dispensing risk. More than two decades of documented remediation costs — tank removals, soil vapor extraction, air sparging, and long-term monitoring — have already accrued, and active cleanup continues. The historical carriers who underwrote this station's operations during the leaded-gasoline years may be obligated both to reimburse past expenditures and to fund the remediation still ahead.

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.