This property has a documented history as a property with a heating oil tank going back to 1930. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could fund a cleanup — and recover costs already spent.
This property operated as a bank building constructed in 1930, with two heating oil underground storage tanks — a 1,600-gallon and a 500-gallon unit — likely installed at the time of original construction. Cleanup under the Voluntary Cleanup Program included closure-in-place of both USTs, excavation and off-site disposal of approximately 38.78 tons of petroleum-contaminated soil, removal of roughly 600 gallons of bunker oil and 20 gallons of kerosene product, and installation of an infiltration/extraction gallery for groundwater and product recovery. The project remained active through October 2015, when it was terminated due to inactivity, leaving the extraction gallery in place for potential future in-situ chemical oxidizer treatments. 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 heating oil releases at this site trace to USTs installed in 1930 — more than five decades before 1986, when occurrence-based CGL policies were still written without effective pollution exclusions. The documented remediation expenditures here — UST closure, soil excavation and disposal, product recovery, and gallery installation — represent real costs already incurred that historical carriers whose policies were in force during those pre-1986 decades may be obligated to reimburse. With groundwater and product recovery and potential chemical oxidizer treatments still ahead, those same carriers may also be liable to fund the remaining work.
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.
