This property has a documented history as a property with a heating oil tank going back to 1922. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could recover the cleanup costs already paid.
The Dexter Horton Building, constructed in 1922, was originally heated by an oil-burning furnace whose Bunker C fuel was stored in three underground storage tanks (USTs) buried beneath the building's northeastern foundation. The USTs were decommissioned in February 2005, with fuel and water mixtures pumped out; in-situ chemical oxidation using 1,140 gallons of hydrogen peroxide was then applied to the affected soil in July and August 2005. Approximately 85 cubic yards of residual contaminated soil remained on site, prompting a Restrictive Covenant recorded in 2006 that requires ongoing monitoring, operation, and maintenance. The site has since received a No Further Action determination under the Voluntary Cleanup Program. 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 Bunker C fuel oil contamination at this property traces directly to heating system infrastructure installed when the building was constructed in 1922 — more than six decades before the 1986 industry-wide shift away from occurrence-based Commercial General Liability coverage. CGL policies written during that pre-1986 window carried no effective pollution exclusion in Washington and remain enforceable today. The documented remediation expenditures here — UST decommissioning, chemical oxidation treatment, and the ongoing monitoring obligations embedded in the 2006 Restrictive Covenant — represent recoverable costs tied to those historical operations and may fall within the coverage obligations of carriers who issued policies during the building's pre-1986 years.
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.
