This property has a documented history as a landfill predating 1986. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could recover the cleanup costs already paid.
This rural Snohomish County property was used by a former tenant as a junk yard and salvage storage area, with more than a dozen derelict vehicles, auto parts, batteries, tires, and paint and solvent containers discovered on and buried beneath the site. Cleanup under the Voluntary Cleanup Program ran from 2005 to 2007 and involved geophysical surveys, test pitting, and the excavation of approximately 15.4 tons of lead-contaminated soil, 3,620 pounds of metal debris, 50 batteries, and 95 tons of solid waste. Ecology issued a No Further Action determination following completion of the remediation. 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 contamination at this property — lead in soil, released gasoline from buried vehicles, and accumulated chemical and battery waste — originates from salvage and junk yard operations that pre-date 1986, when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies lacked effective pollution exclusions. A buried police car with released gasoline, recovered during a 1999 excavation, and documentation of 25 or more derelict vehicles on the property as early as 1994 point to a contamination timeline well within the pre-1986 CGL policy window. Operators or property owners from that era may have carried coverage obligations that remain enforceable today against the documented excavation and disposal costs the cleanup produced.
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.
