This property has a documented history as a industrial and manufacturing facility predating 1986. 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 arsenic and lead deposited at this property originated from smelter operations that ceased more than seven decades before 1986, and from scrap yard activities that similarly predate the shift in CGL policy language. Occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies in force during those pre-1986 operational windows carried no effective pollution exclusion and remain enforceable today. The remediation expenditures being incurred through the Voluntary Cleanup Program — soil capping, groundwater management, and a continuing plume study — represent costs that historical carriers whose policies covered those operations may be obligated both to recover and to fund going forward.

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.