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.
This property has operated as a fuel dispensing site since 1932, initially as a gas station and auto repair facility through 1954, then rebuilt as a Texaco gasoline service station with three underground storage tanks — one 2,000-gallon and two 4,000-gallon — installed in the southwestern corner of the site. The USTs were removed in the late 1980s, and subsequent site investigations have included the drumming of soil cuttings and decontamination fluids. Recommended next steps include excavation and removal of contaminated soil, development of a groundwater monitoring plan incorporating at least four wells, and entry into the Voluntary Cleanup Program; no active cleanup work has yet commenced. 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.
Fuel dispensing operations at this property ran from 1932 through the late 1980s — more than five decades that encompass the entire period when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies carried no effective pollution exclusion. Lead is identified as a contaminant of concern here, a direct fingerprint of pre-1986 leaded gasoline that ties the contamination origin unmistakably to that historical operational window. The costs the property owner now faces — soil excavation, groundwater monitoring, and VCP participation — represent the cleanup liability from those decades of UST operation, and historical carriers who issued CGL policies during that period may be obligated to fund them.
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.
