This property has a documented history as a public works and maintenance facility going back to 1942. Historical insurance policies issued during operations at this property and through 1986 could recover the cleanup costs already paid.
Building 2165 at Fairchild Air Force Base — established in 1942 as an aircraft maintenance and refueling installation — was the location of petroleum contamination associated with former fueling activities and underground storage tanks. Contamination at this Voluntary Cleanup Program site (ST035) was documented as early as 1991 and 1993, and the responsible USTs were removed in 1997. The site has since achieved No Further Action status. 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.
Fairchild AFB has operated continuously since 1942, and the underground storage tanks linked to the ST035 contamination were installed by at least 1972 — well within the period when occurrence-based CGL policies were the industry standard and effective pollution exclusions had not yet taken hold. The base's decades of aircraft maintenance, refueling, and hazardous waste generation are precisely the kind of ongoing operations those pre-1986 policies were written to cover. Historical carriers who issued CGL coverage during the base's pre-1986 operational years may still be obligated to fund recovery of the remediation costs tied to those fueling activities.
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.
