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.
This property has operated as a gasoline service station since at least the early 1960s, with three underground storage tanks dispensing regular gasoline, diesel, and additional fuel products alongside automotive repair and car wash services. In 1994, all three USTs and associated piping were removed and 182 cubic yards of petroleum-contaminated soil were excavated, with bioremediation amendments applied to the excavation area. The site has undergone multi-year groundwater monitoring under the Voluntary Cleanup Program, and further remedial actions were still deemed necessary as recently as 2016. 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.
Petroleum contamination at this property traces to underground storage tanks installed and operated more than two decades before 1986, when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies carried no effective pollution exclusion in Washington. R.H. Smith Distributing Co. purchased and operated the gas station from 1972 through 1987, placing its ownership squarely within the pre-1986 CGL window. The documented remediation costs — tank removals, soil excavation, bioremediation, and decades of groundwater monitoring — represent expenditures the historical carriers may be obligated to recover, and with cleanup still underway, 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.
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.
