This property has a documented history as a industrial and manufacturing facility predating 1986. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could fund a cleanup.
O'Brien Trucking operated as a heavy-equipment trucking facility in Mukilteo, with activities including fleet maintenance, painting operations, pressure washing, and the storage of a fuel truck on site. A Department of Ecology initial investigation in November 1990 identified diesel-range petroleum hydrocarbon and lubrication oil contamination associated with these operations, and drums were removed from the property during that period. The site was formally assessed and listed through a site hazard assessment in 1998, and active cleanup work under the Standard Cleanup program has not 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.
The diesel and lubrication oil contamination at this property resulted from routine trucking and maintenance operations — the kind of slow, accumulating release that predates formal environmental documentation by years or decades. The initial investigation in 1990 captured contamination already present from historical activity, making pre-1986 operations the plausible origin of the releases. Occurrence-based CGL policies issued to commercial operators during that window carried no effective pollution exclusion, and with full remediation costs still ahead of this site, historical carriers whose policies were in force during those years may be obligated to fund the cleanup.
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.
