This property has a documented history as a landfill going back to 1965. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could fund a cleanup.
This property, where the present structure was built in 1965, sits atop up to 50 feet of building debris and basalt rubble — the remnants of a landfill with no liner or leachate collection system. A 1995 Phase II Environmental Site Assessment confirmed petroleum hydrocarbon and lead contamination originating from the disposed waste materials below. Containment measures to date are limited to a landfill cover, a chain link fence, and hay bales for erosion control along the adjacent river slope; no active remediation has commenced under the Standard Cleanup program. 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 landfill mass underlying this property was deposited well before 1986, when occurrence-based CGL policies were the industry standard and pollution exclusions were not yet reliably enforceable. The petroleum hydrocarbon and lead contamination identified here is tied directly to that pre-1986 disposed waste — precisely the kind of slow, continuous release those policies were designed to cover. With active cleanup still ahead and no liner or leachate collection in place, the remediation costs the property owner now faces could plausibly be funded by historical carriers whose policies were in force when the contaminated debris was first deposited.
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.
