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.

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 contamination here traces directly to a former gasoline underground storage tank — the type of system that was standard practice at service stations well before 1986, when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies were still written without effective pollution exclusions. A gasoline release from a former UST is precisely the slow, latent discharge those pre-1986 policies were structured to cover. The documented remediation trail — UST removals, soil excavation, groundwater work, and years of site-specific cleanup analysis under a state technical assistance program — represents expenditures that historical carriers who issued CGL coverage during the operational window may be obligated to fund.

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.