This property has a documented history as a bulk fuel distribution terminal going back to 1955. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could fund a cleanup.

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.

Louden Real Estate has operated from this property since the mid-1950s — well before 1986, when occurrence-based CGL policies were the industry standard and contained no effective pollution exclusion. Contamination migrating from an off-site source onto a covered property is precisely the kind of third-party environmental harm those policies were written to address. The investigation, remedial design, and cleanup costs the property owner now faces could plausibly be funded by historical carriers who issued CGL coverage during that pre-1986 operational window.

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.