This property has a documented history as a landfill going back to 1944. 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.

Disposal operations at this one-acre unlined landfill began in 1944 — more than four decades before 1986, when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies were the industry standard and carried no effective pollution exclusion. The contamination here stems from decades of unlined municipal waste disposal, the kind of slow, diffuse release that pre-1986 CGL policies were written to address. Investigation and remediation costs the responsible party now faces could plausibly be funded by historical carriers whose policies were in force during the years the landfill was actively receiving waste.

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.