This property has a documented history as a public works and maintenance facility going back to 1965. 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 WSDOT materials testing operations that produced the TCE contamination here took place entirely before 1986, when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies were still the industry standard and carried no effective pollution exclusion in Washington. The Palermo Wellfield Superfund designation signals that the contamination has threatened public drinking water, a condition that drives remediation scope — and cost — well above a typical site investigation. The cleanup expenditures this property now faces — Superfund-level investigation, design, and remediation — may be recoverable from historical carriers whose policies were in force during the decades when the contaminating disposal practices occurred.

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.