This property has a documented history as a industrial and manufacturing facility going back to 1959. 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.

Contamination at this site — petroleum hydrocarbons, boiler chemicals, and wood fungicides — stems from decades of lumber manufacturing operations and poor handling practices that predate 1986 by more than twenty-five years. Occurrence-based CGL policies issued to operators during that pre-1986 window carried no effective pollution exclusion in Washington and remain enforceable today. The extensive remediation already conducted and the additional cleanup still required represent costs that historical carriers who covered these industrial operations may be obligated both to reimburse 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.