This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1936. 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 petroleum contamination here originated from underground storage tanks and fuel-dispensing operations that ran for nearly four decades before 1986, when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies still carried no effective pollution exclusion. The contamination source — fuel USTs installed in 1936 and again in 1958 — falls squarely within the operational window those pre-1986 policies were written to cover. The documented and anticipated remediation costs, spanning tank removals, multi-phase site investigation, mass soil excavation, and engineered barriers, represent expenditures that 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.