This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1920. 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.

This station operated continuously from the 1920s through 1992, meaning more than six decades of fuel dispensing and automotive service fell within the pre-1986 period when occurrence-based CGL policies were routinely issued. The petroleum contamination requiring remediation here — ten leaking underground storage tanks, over 2,000 cubic yards of impacted soil, and 122,000 gallons of affected groundwater — traces to releases from those decades of pre-1986 fueling operations, not to any post-closure event. That direct connection between the lengthy pre-1986 operational window and the specific, documented remediation expenditures at Chevron 91253 is what makes historical policy recovery plausible for this property.

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.