This property has a documented history as a public works and maintenance facility going back to 1964. 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.

The petroleum contamination documented here is directly linked to USTs installed in 1964 — more than two decades before 1986, when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies reliably covered pollution events without meaningful exclusion. WSDOT and its predecessor operators were active during that pre-1986 window, and historical carriers who issued CGL policies during those decades of fuel-dispensing operations may retain obligations tied to these releases. The remediation costs now facing the state — soil cleanup, groundwater treatment, and ongoing monitoring — are exactly the type of expenditures those historical policies were written to fund.

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.