This property has a documented history as a bulk fuel distribution terminal going back to 1980. 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.

Contamination at this site is attributed to historical waste-handling operations and spills dating to the early 1980s — including the management of leaded tank bottoms, a listed K052 hazardous waste documented in the facility's 1985 permit application — placing the release squarely in the pre-1986 window when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies carried no effective pollution exclusion in Washington. The breadth of the proposed remediation program — soil excavation, chemical injection, bioremediation, oxidation, long-term natural attenuation, capping, and institutional controls — reflects decades of accumulated environmental liability tied directly to those pre-1986 operations. Historical carriers who issued CGL policies to PRSI during the 1980–1986 period may be obligated both to recover documented cleanup expenditures and to fund the substantial remediation work that lies ahead.

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.