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 recover the cleanup costs already paid.
This Auburn property operated as an industrial fiberglass manufacturing facility, with underground storage tanks on site that contributed to a release of total petroleum hydrocarbons and solid fiberglass waste into soil and groundwater. Remedial activities conducted between 1993 and 1996 under Ecology's Toxic Cleanup Program included UST removal and solid fiberglass waste removal, addressing contamination in both soil and groundwater. Following the completion of those remedial actions, Ecology issued a no further action determination for the site. 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.
The petroleum hydrocarbon contamination at this property originated from underground storage tanks that, based on their removal date in 1993, were almost certainly installed and operating well before 1986 — the threshold year after which occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies began carrying effective pollution exclusions. Industrial facilities of this type routinely held CGL coverage during that pre-1986 operational window, and the documented remediation expenditures — UST removal, fiberglass waste remediation, groundwater investigation — represent costs that historical carriers may be obligated to recover.
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.
