This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1944. 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.

Gasoline storage and dispensing operations at this site ran continuously for more than four decades before 1986, the year occurrence-based CGL policies ceased reliably covering pollution claims in Washington. The TPH-G, ethylbenzene, and xylenes contamination documented in soil and groundwater traces directly to those pre-1986 fueling operations and underground storage tanks. Remediation costs already incurred — tank removals, soil excavation and disposal, over a decade of groundwater monitoring — and costs still ahead represent expenditures that historical carriers who issued CGL policies during the 1944–1986 operational window may be obligated both to reimburse and to fund going forward.

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.