This property has a documented history as a industrial and manufacturing facility going back to 1959. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could fund a cleanup.

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.

Solvent contamination at this property is attributed to the operational years of Uniflite and its successor — manufacturing activity that began in 1959, more than two decades before 1986, when occurrence-based CGL policies still carried no effective pollution exclusion. The gradual release of industrial solvents over decades of boat production is precisely the type of long-tail environmental liability those pre-1986 policies were written to address. The cleanup costs the current property owner now faces — investigation, remedial design, and active cleanup — could plausibly be funded by historical carriers whose policies were in force during those manufacturing years.

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.