This property has a documented history as a farm and agricultural operation predating 1986. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could recover the cleanup costs already paid.
The Townline Growers, Inc. site is a 30-acre raspberry farming operation in Lynden, Whatcom County. A 1993 inspection was triggered by a complaint alleging improper pesticide application and container disposal, with investigators documenting empty 5-gallon containers of dinitro phenol pesticide and a Telone II soil fumigant drum on the property. An abandoned vehicle in an adjacent creek was also flagged as a potential source of fuel-related contamination. The resulting Site Hazard Assessment concluded that no further action was required. 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.
Agricultural pesticide and fumigant applications at this property — including dinitro phenol and Telone II — were characteristic of farming practices conducted well before 1986, when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies carried no effective pollution exclusion. The abandoned vehicle documented in the creek had been in place for many years prior to the 1993 assessment, pointing to a contamination source that predates 1986 by a material margin. Historical CGL carriers who issued policies to this operation during that pre-1986 window retain potential exposure for past investigation costs and for any contamination liability that resurfaces as regulatory standards or site conditions change.
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.
