This property has a documented history as a auto body / repair shop predating 1986. Historical insurance policies issued during operations at this property and through 1986 could fund a cleanup.
This property has hosted timber industry and marine-related operations since the 1800s, and by the early 1990s was converted to a marina and boat launch, with uses including boat repair services. The site currently operates as a working marina complex with warehouses, upland and in-water boat shelters, marine repair facilities, and a marine supply store; a former gasoline pump island and underground storage tank were also part of the property's history, with the UST assessed and removed in 2000. Proposed remediation alternatives include excavation of up to 7,366 cubic yards of impacted soil, sediment dredging, various capping strategies, monitored natural attenuation for groundwater, and institutional controls with long-term monitoring — no active cleanup work has yet commenced. 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 contamination at this property — tributyltin from antifouling marine paint and petroleum hydrocarbons from a former gasoline pump island and USTs — originates from operations conducted long before 1986, the year occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies stopped reliably covering pollution claims. The former UST was in service well before 1986 under any reasonable operating-life estimate, and the site's broader history of marine repair and fuel dispensing extends back decades further. The substantial cleanup costs now anticipated — soil excavation, sediment dredging, capping, and years of groundwater monitoring — represent expenditures that historical carriers whose policies were in force during those pre-1986 operations 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.
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.
