This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station predating 1986. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could fund a cleanup — and recover costs already spent.
This property operated as a gasoline fueling station with underground storage tanks, operated by Pacific Convenience & Fuels, LLC. Groundwater monitoring data dating to 2007 reveals petroleum hydrocarbons and lead contamination across multiple monitoring wells — the presence of lead in association with gasoline is a hallmark of operations predating the mid-1980s phase-out of leaded fuel. Cleanup under the Voluntary Cleanup Program has included long-term groundwater monitoring, monitored natural attenuation, and the recent replacement of two groundwater monitoring wells. Remediation is ongoing. 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 lead-bearing gasoline contamination detected in groundwater beneath this property could only have originated from fuel dispensing operations conducted before leaded gasoline was phased out in the mid-1980s — squarely within the era when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies carried no effective pollution exclusion. Years of groundwater monitoring, well installation, and natural-attenuation oversight represent documented remediation expenditures tied to those pre-1986 releases. Historical carriers who covered the fueling operation during that window may be obligated both to reimburse costs already incurred and to fund the cleanup work that remains.
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.
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.
