This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1977. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could recover the cleanup costs already paid.

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 UST at this property was installed around 1977 and leaked through progressive deterioration over years of normal operations — exactly the kind of slow, ongoing release that occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies issued during that era were designed to cover. The documented remediation expenditures — tank removal, excavation of 45 tons of contaminated soil, backfilling, waste disposal, and years of site assessment — represent cleanup costs incurred to address contamination originating squarely within the 1977-to-1986 window when CGL policies carried no effective pollution exclusion. Historical carriers who provided coverage during that operational period may still be obligated to recover those costs.

Restorical's role is to locate viable historical policies, determine whether a successful cost recovery claim is possible, and assist our clients and their legal counsel to obtain insurance coverage for costs already incurred. Restorical's forensic accounting team works to re-establish and document past cleanup expenditures, ensuring the strongest possible basis for recovery.