This property has a documented history as a farm and agricultural operation going back to 1973. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could recover the cleanup costs already paid.
This agricultural property operated as the Sun King Fruit Company, with underground storage tanks installed in 1973 to fuel fruit transport trucks during harvest seasons. Two USTs were removed in 1994, and remediation over a thirty-year span included excavation of approximately 6,745 cubic yards of petroleum-impacted soil, on-site pump-and-treat groundwater treatment with an air stripper processing 30,000 gallons, bioremediation using Oxygen Release Compound, and landfarming of excavated soil. The site received a No Further Action determination through the Voluntary Cleanup Program in 2024. 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 originated from underground storage tanks installed in 1973 — more than a decade before occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies gave way to claims-made forms with absolute pollution exclusions. Three decades of documented remediation expenditures, from tank removals and large-scale soil excavation to groundwater treatment and bioremediation, were incurred to address releases tied directly to those pre-1986 fueling operations. Historical carriers who issued CGL policies covering the Sun King Fruit Company during that operational window may still be obligated to recover those cleanup costs.
Restorical's role is to locate viable historical policies, determine whether a successful cost recovery claim is possible, and assist our clients and their legal counsel to obtain insurance coverage for costs already incurred. Restorical's forensic accounting team works to re-establish and document past cleanup expenditures, ensuring the strongest possible basis for recovery.
Recovering Costs from an Older Cleanup
If this site reached No Further Action years ago, the original cleanup expenditures may be difficult to reconstruct. Restorical's forensic accounting team specializes in re-establishing and documenting past cleanup costs — even decades later — to build the strongest possible basis for an insurance recovery claim.
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.
