This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1964. Historical insurance policies issued during operations at this property and through 1986 could fund a cleanup — and recover costs already spent.
This property has operated as a retail gasoline station since at least 1964, when the earliest underground storage tanks were installed; it was redeveloped as a Mobil station in 1969 and continues today as a '76' brand facility. Remediation and monitoring under the Voluntary Cleanup Program have been ongoing since at least 1992, including removal of former USTs, recovery of 3,555 gallons of petroleum-affected fluids through enhanced liquid recovery and manual bailing, and operation of a soil vapor extraction and air sparging system from 2013 to 2015 that recovered approximately 3,326 pounds of TPH-G and 124 pounds of BTEX. Groundwater sampling and remediation activities remain in progress. 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.
Petroleum contamination at this site is attributed to underground storage tanks and fuel dispensers that were installed and operating more than two decades before 1986, when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies still carried no effective pollution exclusion in Washington. The detection of total lead in early soil and groundwater samples — consistent with leaded gasoline phased out in the mid-1980s — further anchors the contamination to that pre-1986 operational window. Over three decades of documented remediation expenditures, from UST removals and groundwater recovery to vapor extraction and long-term monitoring, represent costs that historical carriers may be obligated both to reimburse and to fund as cleanup continues.
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.