This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1940. 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 USTs at this site dispensed leaded gasoline for roughly five decades — from approximately 1940 until operations ceased around 1990 — spanning the entire era when occurrence-based CGL policies were standard and carried no effective pollution exclusion. The petroleum hydrocarbon contamination documented here traces directly to that pre-1986 operational period, when such underground releases were neither well-regulated nor rapidly detectable. Tank closure-in-place, groundwater sampling, and ongoing monitoring represent remediation expenditures tied to historical fuel dispensing; carriers who issued CGL coverage during those decades of active operation may still be obligated to recover those costs and to fund any remaining cleanup work.

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.