This property has a documented history as a dry cleaning facility predating 1986. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could fund a cleanup.
This property was historically identified as a former gasoline service station operating sometime between the 1960s and 1970s, yet Phase II investigation found no detectable gasoline contamination. Instead, tetrachloroethene (PCE) — explicitly characterized as dry cleaner solvent — was detected in soil vapor and shallow soil samples at concentrations above screening levels, with trichloroethene (TCE) also identified; the PCE is attributed to either a former on-site dry cleaning use or migration through underground utility conduits. Investigative monitoring and sampling ran from March 2015 through July 2016 to characterize the contamination, and a minor remediation — sealing and backfilling soil borings — was completed to prevent further contaminant migration. The site is currently awaiting additional cleanup actions. 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 chlorinated solvent contamination at this property — PCE and TCE — traces to operations that predate 1986, whether on-site dry cleaning or a nearby source that infiltrated via underground conduits during the decades the property hosted industrial tenants. Occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies in force before 1986 lacked effective pollution exclusions and remain enforceable against the carriers who issued them. The investigation work already completed and the cleanup expenditures yet to come — remedial design, active remediation, long-term monitoring — are exactly the costs that historical carriers whose policies covered this property during that pre-1986 operational window 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.
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.
