This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1973. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could fund a cleanup — and recover costs already spent.
Marys Market operated as a combined retail grocery and petroleum dispensing station from approximately 1973, with underground storage tanks — including at least one leaded gasoline tank — and fuel dispensers at a pump island on the eastern portion of the property. Cleanup under the Voluntary Cleanup Program began in July 1995 and included removal of three USTs totaling 19,000 gallons of capacity, excavation of petroleum-contaminated soil from the tank and pump island areas, and on-site treatment of 20,000 gallons of petroleum-affected groundwater using a portable treatment unit. An air sparging system was installed in August 1995 and expanded with six to seven additional injection points and a compressor in 1996 to address residual groundwater contamination, with long-term monitoring recommended to track reduction of concentrations. 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 releases at this site trace directly to underground storage tanks — including a confirmed leaded gasoline UST, an automatic pre-1986 indicator — that were in service from around 1973 through the mid-1990s. Occurrence-based CGL policies issued to the operators during that window carried no effective pollution exclusion in Washington State and remain enforceable today. The documented remediation expenditures here — tank removals, soil excavation, groundwater treatment, air sparging installation and expansion, and multi-year monitoring — represent costs incurred from a contamination event rooted in those pre-1986 operations, and with the cleanup record reflecting ongoing remediation, both past outlays and future remediation work may be recoverable from historical carriers.
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.
