This property has a documented history as a industrial and manufacturing facility going back to 1964. 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 industrial shop were installed by at least the mid-1960s, placing the origin of contamination squarely within the era when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies carried no effective pollution exclusion in Washington. Decades of petroleum product storage and handling produced the gasoline, diesel, and BTEX contamination now documented in soil and groundwater beneath the property. The remediation costs already incurred — tank removals, large-scale soil excavation, groundwater treatment, long-term monitoring, and site capping — along with any future monitoring obligations, represent expenditures that historical carriers who covered the facility during its pre-1986 operations may be obligated to fund.

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.