This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1968. Historical insurance policies issued during operations at this property 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.

This station dispensed leaded gasoline for roughly two decades before 1986 — the period when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies were the industry standard and carried no effective pollution exclusion. The contamination discovered in 2001 is explicitly attributed to that historical fueling equipment, not to the replacement USTs installed in November 1987, meaning the operative releases trace directly to the pre-1986 operational window. The documented VCP remediation trail — nearly 900 tons of excavated soil, thermal treatment, groundwater recovery, and more than a decade of monitoring — represents costs that historical carriers whose policies covered ARCO 6031's operations during the leaded-gasoline era may still 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.