This property has a documented history as a industrial and manufacturing facility going back to 1931. 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.

Industrial operations at this property date to at least 1931 — more than five decades before 1986, when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies still provided broad pollution coverage with no effective exclusion in Washington. The contamination requiring remediation here originated entirely from decades of slag disposal and log yard operations conducted within that pre-1986 window, with slag use ceasing in 1981. The documented cleanup expenditures — demolition, soil excavation, groundwater monitoring, and construction of a nearly 30-acre concrete cap — represent costs that historical carriers who issued CGL policies during those operational decades may be obligated both to recover and to fund going forward.

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.