This property has a documented history as a farm and agricultural operation going back to 1953. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could recover the cleanup costs already paid.
This property served as a dairy farm from at least 1953, supporting as many as 600 dairy cows along with pea and corn cultivation. Underground storage tanks used to fuel farm equipment leaked petroleum into the soil, and cleanup under the Voluntary Cleanup Program included UST removal, excavation of approximately 300 tons of TPH-contaminated soil for offsite treatment, and groundwater monitoring through five wells from 1999 to 2003. A Restrictive Covenant was recorded in 2001 to manage residual contamination, and the site has received a No Further Action determination. 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.
Petroleum contamination at this property traces to underground storage tanks that were in service during decades of agricultural operations predating 1986 — tanks estimated to have been installed by 1967 and not removed until 1992. Occurrence-based CGL policies issued to the farm's operators during that pre-1986 window carried no effective pollution exclusion under Washington law. The documented remediation expenditures — tank removal, excavation of 300 tons of contaminated soil, years of groundwater monitoring, and institutional controls — represent costs that the historical carriers who covered those operations may still be obligated to reimburse.
Restorical's role is to locate viable historical policies, determine whether a successful cost recovery claim is possible, and assist our clients and their legal counsel to obtain insurance coverage for costs already incurred. Restorical's forensic accounting team works to re-establish and document past cleanup expenditures, ensuring the strongest possible basis for recovery.
Recovering Costs from an Older Cleanup
If this site reached No Further Action years ago, the original cleanup expenditures may be difficult to reconstruct. Restorical's forensic accounting team specializes in re-establishing and documenting past cleanup costs — even decades later — to build the strongest possible basis for an insurance recovery claim.
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.
