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 recover the cleanup costs already paid.
This property operated as the ALPAC Corporation facility, a soft drink bottling plant whose fuel station area housed seven underground storage tanks — including a 10,000-gallon gasoline UST, two 10,000-gallon diesel USTs, and three 500-gallon motor oil and used oil USTs serving the corporate truck fleet. Cleanup under a Standard Cleanup program included excavation and removal of all USTs, thermal treatment of approximately 3,100 tons of petroleum-affected soil, and extensive groundwater monitoring from 1993 through 1996 that led to a No Further Action determination for both petroleum and a separate caustic release. Some tanks were removed as early as the mid-1970s, with remaining pre-1988 USTs addressed thereafter. 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 contamination at this site originated from underground storage tanks that were installed and operated well before 1986 — evidenced by leaded gasoline storage and tank removals dating to the mid-1970s. Occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies in effect during those decades of fuel storage and dispensing had no effective pollution exclusion under Washington law. The documented remediation costs — UST removals, excavation and thermal treatment of over 3,100 tons of soil, years of groundwater monitoring, and well decommissioning — represent expenditures that historical carriers who covered the facility during its pre-1986 operations may still be obligated to reimburse.
Restorical's role is to locate viable historical policies, determine whether a successful cost recovery claim is possible, and assist our clients and their legal counsel to obtain insurance coverage for costs already incurred. Restorical's forensic accounting team works to re-establish and document past cleanup expenditures, ensuring the strongest possible basis for recovery.
Recovering Costs from an Older Cleanup
If this site reached No Further Action years ago, the original cleanup expenditures may be difficult to reconstruct. Restorical's forensic accounting team specializes in re-establishing and documenting past cleanup costs — even decades later — to build the strongest possible basis for an insurance recovery claim.
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.
