This property has a documented history as a farm and agricultural operation predating 1986. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could fund a cleanup — and recover costs already spent.
This Lacey-area property was contaminated by soil fumigants — ethylene dibromide (EDB), 1,2-dichloropropane (1,2-DCP), and DBCP — applied to row crops including strawberries, raspberries, and seed potatoes to control nematodes. Contamination was discovered in 1984 and investigations had been underway since the early 1980s; EDB's agricultural use was federally banned in 1984. Remediation has included excavation of contaminated soil, installation of groundwater treatment systems, provision of bottled water to affected residents, and extension of public water lines to neighboring residences, with monitoring and remedial actions continuing. 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 fumigant applications at this site predated the 1984 federal EDB ban, placing the contaminating operations squarely within the years when occurrence-based CGL policies were still the standard form and carried no effective pollution exclusion. The contamination migrated off-property and reached neighboring residential drinking water supplies — exactly the third-party property damage and bodily injury exposure that pre-1986 CGL policies were written to cover. The documented costs here — groundwater treatment infrastructure, bottled water supply, public water line extensions, and ongoing monitoring — represent the kind of multi-year remediation liability that historical carriers whose policies were in force during those fumigation years may still 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 & 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.