This property has a documented history as a auto body / repair shop going back to 1960. 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.

Automotive service operations at this property began in 1960 — more than two decades before the 1986 threshold after which occurrence-based CGL policies began routinely excluding pollution claims. The contamination is explicitly attributed to historic operations from that pre-1986 window: in-ground hydraulic hoists and a waste oil tank installed and used during an era when such policies had no effective pollution exclusion. The documented remediation trail — UST removal, soil excavation, groundwater treatment, and ongoing monitoring — represents expenditures tied directly to releases from that earlier operational period, leaving historical carriers who issued CGL policies during the 1960s through 1980s potentially obligated to fund continued cleanup.

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.