This property has a documented history as a industrial and manufacturing facility going back to 1947. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could fund a cleanup — and recover costs already spent.
This property has operated as a metal reclaiming facility since the late 1940s, accepting, consolidating, and reselling all types of reclaimed metals. Lead contamination is present on the site from a previous lead smelter operation. Cleanup activities have included the excavation and removal of a 1,000-gallon unleaded gasoline underground storage tank installed in 1978, along with approximately 3–5 cubic yards of impacted soil, with the excavated tank sheared for metal reclaiming and residual fuel legally disposed. Cleanup work is ongoing 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.
Industrial operations at this site — metal reclaiming and lead smelting — began roughly four decades before 1986, when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies were standard and carried no effective pollution exclusion in Washington. The contamination documented here, including lead from historical smelting and petroleum from a UST installed in 1978, traces directly to those pre-1986 operations. Historical carriers who issued CGL policies during the decades of active industrial use may be obligated both to recover remediation costs already incurred and to fund the cleanup work that remains ahead.
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.