This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1956. 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 Texaco gasoline service station from 1956 to 1988, with three underground gasoline storage tanks, a waste oil tank, and a heating oil tank on site. Cleanup under the Voluntary Cleanup Program has included the excavation and removal of 4,200 tons of petroleum-contaminated soil, removal of all USTs and ancillary tanks, groundwater pumping and treatment, and construction of a hydraulic barrier wall extending up to 30 feet deep. Remediation activities have spanned from 1988 through at least 2014, with quarterly groundwater monitoring conducted over that period, and further remedial action is still needed. 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 and lead contamination at this site originated from underground storage tanks that were installed and operated continuously for more than three decades before 1986, when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies were the industry standard and carried no effective pollution exclusion in Washington. The documented remediation expenditures — large-scale soil excavation, tank removals, groundwater treatment, subsurface barrier construction, and years of monitoring — represent costs that historical carriers who insured the station during its pre-1986 operations 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.