This property has a documented history as a bulk fuel distribution terminal going back to 1971. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations 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.

OPLC's pump station has operated since 1971, meaning the company carried CGL policies at this facility for more than fifteen years before 1986 — policies written for fuel distribution operations of this era that had not yet incorporated effective pollution exclusions. The contamination here is directly traceable to the fuel distribution infrastructure installed and operated during that pre-1986 window, giving those historical carriers a concrete connection to the releases documented at this site. The remediation expenditures already on record — excavations, piping reconstruction, groundwater treatment systems, long-term capture and monitoring programs — represent costs already incurred and work still underway; carriers whose policies covered OPLC's operations at this pump station before 1986 may be obligated both to recover past cleanup costs and to fund the remediation that continues today.

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.