This property has a documented history as a industrial and manufacturing facility going back to 1979. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could recover the cleanup costs already paid.
Kenmar Co., Inc. operated as a vanilla extract manufacturing company at this Ferndale property from 1979 to 1980, generating significant chemical waste before abandoning the site and leaving more than one hundred drums of chemicals and waste products behind. In 1981, a spill of oil and dimethyl acetamide occurred during dismantling of the processing tanks, and a Superfund Preliminary Assessment was completed in 1985. Remediation included pumping out ponded oil and dimethyl acetamide, excavation of a contaminated drainage ditch, on-site burial of contaminated soil, removal of 99 drums of waste material, construction of a retention ditch, and installation of security fencing — with the site ultimately receiving a No Further Action determination. 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 traces directly to manufacturing operations and a documented 1981 tank-dismantling spill — both occurring well before 1986, when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies were still the industry standard and lacked effective pollution exclusions in Washington. A facility that abandoned drums of industrial chemical waste and generated a Superfund-level assessment within its brief operational window presents a clear pre-1986 liability trail. Historical CGL carriers whose policies were in force during the 1979–1981 operational and spill period may remain obligated to recover the documented remediation expenditures incurred at this site.
Restorical's role is to locate viable historical policies, determine whether a successful cost recovery claim is possible, and assist our clients and their legal counsel to obtain insurance coverage for costs already incurred. Restorical's forensic accounting team works to re-establish and document past cleanup expenditures, ensuring the strongest possible basis for recovery.
Recovering Costs from an Older Cleanup
If this site reached No Further Action years ago, the original cleanup expenditures may be difficult to reconstruct. Restorical's forensic accounting team specializes in re-establishing and documenting past cleanup costs — even decades later — to build the strongest possible basis for an insurance recovery claim.
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.
