This property has a documented history as an industrial and manufacturing facility predating 1986. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could help fund the cleanup that lies ahead.
This industrial property in Multnomah County has a history of auto wrecking and scrap yard operations, with a predecessor scrap yard — Swift Boulevard Junk — that received PCB-containing transformers and stored lead-acid batteries on the property. Oregon DEQ documented surface water contaminated with floating free-phase hydrocarbons including diesel, oil, antifreeze, and possibly gasoline and transmission fluid, and City of Portland sampling in 1996–97 found heavy oil contamination in soils as deep as 30 feet below ground surface. After the property owner scraped off the top layer of contaminated soil, no confirmation sampling of remaining soil or groundwater was performed, and no No Further Action determination has been issued — the site remains unassigned with known contamination unaddressed. That history could support an insurance coverage claim against the carriers who issued policies more than 40 years ago — coverage that could help fund the cleanup ahead.
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 Oregon — and those policies may provide coverage that remains enforceable today. 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 contamination at this property — free-phase hydrocarbons documented in surface water and heavy oil contamination found in soils as deep as 30 feet below ground surface — traces to longstanding auto wrecking and scrap yard operations at the site, including predecessor scrap yard activity, that were well underway before 1986. With no confirmation sampling of remaining soil or groundwater completed and no further action determination issued by Oregon DEQ, the investigation, delineation, and cleanup costs this property still faces are precisely the type of future obligations that historical pre-1986 carriers may be obligated to 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.
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
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.