This property has a documented history as a bulk fuel distribution terminal predating 1986. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could fund a cleanup — and recover costs already spent.
This property operated as Rainier Disposal, a petroleum bulk storage facility run by Waste Management of North America, with a fuel island, diesel storage tanks ranging up to 60,000 gallons, and a maintenance shop serving the company's vehicle fleet. In April 1989, a 1,000-gallon underground gasoline tank was removed and petroleum contamination was discovered in the surrounding soil. Cleanup activities have included excavation and replacement of contaminated soil and quarterly groundwater monitoring — involving well purging and sampling — conducted over a multi-year period. Cleanup work remains ongoing. 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.
The petroleum contamination at this site originated from an underground storage tank that was in service well before 1986, when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies carried no effective pollution exclusion in Washington. Documented remediation expenditures — tank removal, soil excavation and replacement, and years of quarterly groundwater monitoring — were incurred to address a release tied directly to those pre-1986 bulk storage operations. Historical carriers who issued CGL policies during the tank's operational window may be obligated both to recover costs already spent and to fund the cleanup work that remains ahead.
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.