This property has a documented history as a dry cleaning facility going back to 1970. 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 PCE and TCE contamination at this property originated from dry cleaning operations underway by at least 1970 — more than fifteen years before 1986, when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies still carried no effective pollution exclusion in Washington. The slow-migrating chlorinated solvent releases characteristic of dry cleaning facilities are precisely the type of gradual, continuous occurrence those policies were written to cover. Historical carriers who issued CGL coverage during Inglewood Cleaners' pre-1986 operational window may be obligated both to recover the monitoring and remediation costs already incurred and to fund the active bioremediation program still under way.

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.