This property has a documented history as a auto body / repair shop predating 1986. 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.

Facility records from 1990 and 1991 confirm this truck repair operation was active well before 1986, when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies still lacked effective pollution exclusions. The petroleum releases documented here — oil disposal on the ground, wash-bay sump discharge — are precisely the type of ongoing, operations-linked contamination those pre-1986 policies were written to cover. Historical carriers whose policies were in force during the facility's pre-1986 operational period may be obligated both to recover the remediation costs already incurred and to fund the continued groundwater monitoring and well decommissioning work still required.

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.