This property has a documented history as a dry cleaning facility 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.

PCE-based dry cleaning at this property predates 1986, the year occurrence-based CGL policies effectively stopped providing coverage for environmental releases in Washington. The contamination documented here — PCE degrading into TCE and migrating into soil gas and indoor air — is the type of slow, ongoing release that pre-1986 policies were written to address. The active and continuing remediation expenditures at Grace Dry Cleaners represent costs that historical carriers whose policies were in force during those earlier dry cleaning operations may be obligated both to recover and to fund going forward.

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.