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.

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 petroleum contamination at this property traces directly to underground fuel storage and dispensing operations that were underway well before 1986, when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies had no effective pollution exclusion. Three named historical tank areas — A, B, and C — document a release timeline that predates modern policy language and has already required a formal Cleanup Action Plan, an engineered AS/SVE remediation system, recurring LNAPL recovery, and years of groundwater monitoring. Historical carriers who issued CGL policies to the facility operators during that pre-1986 window may still be obligated to fund both the remediation costs already incurred and those still ongoing.

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.