This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1954. 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.

The underground storage tank at the center of this site's contamination was installed in 1954 and dispensed gasoline for decades before 1986, when occurrence-based CGL policies still lacked any effective pollution exclusion in Washington. The contamination now documented in soil and groundwater — a slow release tied directly to that pre-1986 infrastructure — is precisely the type of loss those policies were written to cover. The remediation ahead, including UST decommissioning, soil excavation, and offsite disposal of impacted material, represents costs that historical carriers whose policies were in force during the 1954-to-1986 operational window may be obligated to fund.

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.