This property has a documented history as a industrial and manufacturing facility going back to 1967. 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.

The underground storage tanks at this site were installed as early as approximately 1967, placing the origin of contamination well before 1986 — the year occurrence-based CGL policies ceased reliably covering pollution claims in Washington. More than two decades of documented remediation expenditures — tank removals, free-product recovery, bioremediation, vapor extraction, and long-term monitoring — trace directly to releases from those pre-1986 operations. Historical carriers who issued CGL policies during the decades the tanks were in service may be obligated both to recover past cleanup costs and to fund the remediation still underway.

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.