This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1946. 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 gasoline service station from at least 1946, changing hands through a succession of operators — Horner's Service and Grocery, Bob's Richfield, Jim's Signal, Steve's Enco, and Humphrey's Exxon — into the 1970s. Six underground storage tanks, including four gasoline USTs, were removed in 1990–1991 along with 5,000 gallons of dewatered material and ex-situ treatment of impacted soil. Cleanup is ongoing under USEPA brownfield assessment funding, with future plans that may include further soil excavation, in-situ groundwater treatment, monitored natural attenuation, and vapor intrusion mitigation. 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.
Gasoline dispensing at this site began four decades before 1986, spanning a continuous period when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies carried no effective pollution exclusion in Washington. The contamination — petroleum releases from underground storage tanks installed and operated across that pre-1986 window — has already driven one round of UST removal and soil remediation, and a second phase of cleanup work is now being scoped. Historical carriers who issued CGL policies to the station's successive operators may be obligated both to recover past remediation costs and to fund the cleanup work 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.
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.