This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1960. 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 contamination at this site traces directly to leaded-gasoline USTs that were in the ground and in active use for decades before 1986, when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies carried no effective pollution exclusion. Historical carriers who wrote CGL coverage during the station's operational years may be obligated both to recover costs already incurred in excavating the tanks and impacted soil and to fund the substantial remediation work that remains. With projected cleanup expenditures reaching up to $4.3 million over the next three decades, identifying and activating pre-1986 insurance coverage is a meaningful financial question for any party with an interest in this property.

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.