This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1965. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could recover the cleanup costs already paid.
This property operated as a gasoline service station — first as a Gull station, then purchased by Texaco in 1989 — with four underground storage tanks ranging from 4,000 to 10,000 gallons in capacity, two pump islands, and a convenience store. Cleanup under the Voluntary Cleanup Program began in 1989 and included removal of all four USTs in August 1990, excavation of approximately 1,000 cubic yards of petroleum-contaminated soil treated via Solid Phase techniques, and continuous groundwater extraction and treatment since 1990 using bioreactors, activated carbon, and reintroduction galleries — with over 2.9 million gallons of groundwater treated by June 1993 alone. The site has received a No Further Action determination. 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 site originated from underground storage tanks and pump islands that were installed and operated decades before 1986, during the era when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies carried no effective pollution exclusion. The documented remediation expenditures — tank removal, large-scale soil excavation and treatment, and years of engineered groundwater extraction — represent costs tied directly to releases from those pre-1986 operations. Historical carriers who issued CGL policies covering this station during its earlier operational period may still be obligated to reimburse 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.
