This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1958. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could fund a cleanup.
This property operated as a retail gasoline station from the late 1950s through 2015, with three successive underground storage tank systems installed and operated over that span. An interim cleanup action has been completed, including excavation and off-site disposal of more than 600 tons of gasoline-impacted soil and the pumping of 13,460 gallons of gasoline-impacted groundwater to the sanitary sewer. Further groundwater monitoring and a remedial investigation are recommended before site closure can be achieved, and the cleanup project remains ongoing. 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 contamination here originated from first-generation underground storage tanks installed in the late 1950s — releases tied directly to operations that predate 1986 by nearly three decades. Occurrence-based CGL policies issued to this site's operators during that pre-1986 window carried no effective pollution exclusion and may remain enforceable today. The remediation costs already incurred — hundreds of tons of excavated soil, thousands of gallons of recovered groundwater — along with the investigation and groundwater monitoring still ahead, represent exactly the expenditures that historical carriers 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.
