This property has a documented history as a industrial and manufacturing facility going back to 1977. Historical insurance policies issued during operations at this property and through 1986 could fund a cleanup — and recover costs already spent.

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 diesel UST that sourced the contamination here was in service throughout the years when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies carried no effective pollution exclusion — and Nordstrom's documented operations at the site reach back to at least 1977, well before the 1986 threshold. A UST consistent with a roughly 25-year service life could plausibly have been installed as early as the late 1960s, extending the potential policy window further. The documented remediation costs — tank removal, multi-phase soil excavation, regulatory oversight, and a 2015 hazard assessment — represent both expenditures already incurred and ongoing cleanup obligations that historical CGL carriers may be required to recover and 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.