This property has a documented history as a industrial and manufacturing facility going back to 1930. 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.

The petroleum, solvent, and chemical contamination here originated from recycling and distillation operations documented at this site across multiple decades before 1986, the year occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies stopped reliably covering pollution claims. Carriers who issued CGL policies to the facility operators during those pre-1986 decades wrote coverage with no effective pollution exclusion, and those obligations do not expire with the policy period. The remediation costs already incurred — soil excavation, groundwater treatment, drum removal, capping — and the substantial scope of work still ahead represent liabilities that historical carriers 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.