This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1971. Historical insurance policies issued during operations at this property and through 1986 could fund a cleanup — and recover costs already spent.
This property operated as a Shell-branded gasoline service center with underground storage tanks estimated to have been installed as early as 1971. Three 10,000-gallon USTs were removed by 1996, and cleanup under the Voluntary Cleanup Program has continued since — including soil excavation, installation and operation of eight soil vapor extraction wells, an air sparge well, and annual groundwater monitoring through a network of nine wells. The site is currently in active commercial use as a Sun Mart fuel station with operational gasoline and diesel USTs. 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 that were installed and operated well before 1986, when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies carried no effective pollution exclusion in Washington. More than two decades of documented remediation expenditures — tank removals, excavation, vapor extraction, air sparging, and ongoing groundwater monitoring spanning 1996 through at least 2017 — represent costs that historical carriers who issued CGL policies during the pre-1986 operational window may be obligated both to reimburse and to fund as cleanup continues.
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.
