This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1964. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could fund a cleanup — and recover costs already spent.
The Lincoln Square Apartments in Port Angeles has experienced petroleum contamination traceable to two neighboring service station properties: the Round the Clock Deli Grocery, a former service station, and ARCO 5719, an operational service station and mini-mart, both of which released petroleum hydrocarbons from underground storage tanks. Documented incidents span from an oil sheen observed in the mid-1970s through gasoline vapor evacuations in the early 1980s and a spill response in January 1981. Remediation under the Voluntary Cleanup Program has included contaminated soil excavation and disposal, tank removal and abandonment, in-situ source treatment, vapor mitigation systems, drainage control, pavement cap maintenance, and environmental covenants with long-term monitoring — with investigation and phased cleanup actions ongoing since the 1970s. 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 service station operations responsible for this contamination include at least one facility operating since 1964 — more than two decades before 1986, when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies lacked effective pollution exclusions. The documented releases, beginning with the mid-1970s oil sheen and escalating to evacuations and emergency spill response by 1981, fall squarely within the coverage window of pre-1986 CGL policies held by the source operators. The full trail of remediation expenditures at this property — soil excavation, vapor mitigation, in-situ treatment, decades of monitoring, and recorded environmental covenants — represents costs that historical carriers whose policies were in force during those 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.
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.
