This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1932. 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.

Fuel dispensing operations at this property began in 1932 — more than five decades before occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies began routinely excluding pollution claims — and the leaking underground storage tanks that produced the documented soil and groundwater contamination were a direct product of that decades-long operational history. Pre-1986 CGL policies carried by the operators of this fuel station during that extended window had no effective pollution exclusion in Washington and remain enforceable against the releases confirmed here. The remediation costs already incurred — investigation, UST abandonment, and ongoing cleanup — represent expenditures the historical carriers 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.