This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1947. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could fund a cleanup.
This property operated as a gasoline service station across two successive tenancies: a first-generation station from 1947 through 1963, followed by a second-generation Chevron service station — Manley Chevron Service and then Martin Chevron Service — operating from 1968 through 1979. Soil and groundwater beneath the site are confirmed to contain gasoline-range TPH and BTEX compounds attributable to those fueling operations. A Phase II Environmental Site Assessment has been completed under the Voluntary Cleanup Program, but no remediation activities have been initiated; the site is currently awaiting cleanup. The property is now in commercial use as Pho Thai restaurant. 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.
Fuel dispensing operations at this location ran for more than three decades — from 1947 through 1979 — entirely within the era when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies carried no effective pollution exclusion. The gasoline-range hydrocarbons and BTEX compounds now confirmed in soil and groundwater are the product of sustained underground storage and dispensing activity, precisely the type of slow, accumulating release those pre-1986 policies were written to cover. With site investigation complete and active remediation still ahead, the property owner faces substantial upcoming cleanup costs that historical carriers who issued CGL policies to the Chevron operators during those decades 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 & 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.