This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1970. 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 contamination here traces directly to underground storage tanks and fueling operations that began in the early 1970s — more than a decade before occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies stopped reliably covering pollution claims. The documented remediation work across these parcels, including UST removals, large-scale soil excavation, and thirty-plus years of groundwater monitoring, represents costs tied to releases that occurred during the pre-1986 operational window. With cleanup incomplete, historical carriers whose CGL policies were in force during those service station years may be obligated both to recover incurred remediation costs and to fund the work that remains.

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.