This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1972. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could fund a cleanup — and recover costs already spent.
A retail gasoline service station operated at the Shell Property north of this site from at least 1972 through 1989, with underground storage tanks estimated to have been installed around 1970. Those tanks — which contained leaded gasoline — were removed in 1990, and petroleum contamination was confirmed in soil and groundwater beneath the property. Cleanup under the Voluntary Cleanup Program has included excavation of approximately 5,263 tons and 3,650 cubic yards of contaminated soil, extraction of over 14 million gallons of impacted groundwater, soil vapor extraction recovering 2,400 pounds of vapor-phase hydrocarbons, activated carbon injections, and construction of a 200-to-220-foot permeable activated carbon wall, with ongoing monitoring and institutional controls in place. 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.
The petroleum releases at this site originated from underground storage tanks installed and operated well before 1986, when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies carried no effective pollution exclusion in Washington. The scope of documented remediation — massive soil removal, years of groundwater extraction and treatment, vapor recovery, and a permanent subsurface carbon barrier — represents both costs already incurred and obligations that continue. Historical carriers who issued CGL policies to the station's operators during the 1972-to-1986 window may still be obligated to fund both the recovery of past cleanup expenditures and the ongoing remediation work.
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.