This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station predating 1986. Historical insurance policies issued during operations at this property and through 1986 could fund a cleanup — and recover costs already spent.
Big Rock Grocery has operated as a fuel-dispensing gas station from a building that has stood on the Mount Vernon property since the early 1900s, with multiple underground storage tanks for gasoline and diesel documented on the site. Cleanup activities have included the removal of underground storage tanks totaling 11,000 gallons of capacity in 1997, the in-place closure of a 1,000-gallon gasoline UST in November 1997, and the removal of an additional 1,000-gallon tank and a fuel-pump island in 2011. An in-situ remediation system estimated to cost $50,000 to $100,000 over five years has been recommended by Ecology but has not yet been installed. The property continues to operate as a gas station and restaurant. 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.
Fuel dispensing at this site has continued from a facility built in the early 1900s, with the underground storage tanks removed in 1997 consistent with installation well before 1986 under standard tank lifecycle estimates — pre-1986 operations here are not a borderline inference but a documented baseline. Occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies in force during that pre-1986 operational window carried no effective pollution exclusion under Washington law and remain enforceable today. The site's documented remediation expenditures — multiple tank removals, pump-island demolition, and a pending in-situ treatment system valued at up to $100,000 — represent costs that historical carriers may be obligated both to reimburse for work already performed and to fund through the cleanup's completion.
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.
