This property has a documented history as a auto body / repair shop going back to 1924. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could fund a cleanup — and recover costs already spent.
The UW Tacoma campus occupies land with a documented industrial history spanning more than a century, including at least two identified auto repair facilities: AOC 6 at 1701 Tacoma Avenue South, which operated as an auto repair garage from 1924 to 1969, and AOC 9 at 1755 Fawcett Avenue, also an auto repair facility. Chlorinated volatile organic compound contamination from those operations has spread across much of the western portion of the campus as the "Westerly Plume." Petroleum contamination is additionally linked to a Standard Oil Station at 1742 Jefferson Avenue that operated from the 1930s until 1985, when its underground storage tanks were removed. Remediation has been ongoing since 1991 under multiple Agreed Orders and capital projects, including excavation and removal of approximately 1,660 cubic yards of contaminated soil, removal of underground storage tanks, and a passive in-situ chemical oxidation pilot study for groundwater treatment. 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 chlorinated solvent and petroleum contamination at this site traces to auto repair and gasoline station operations that began as early as 1924 — more than six decades before 1986, when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies were still standard and carried no effective pollution exclusion. Historical carriers who issued CGL policies to the operators of AOC 6, AOC 9, or the Standard Oil Station during their pre-1986 operating windows may remain obligated under those policies today. The site's documented remediation expenditures — UST removals, large-scale soil excavation, and groundwater treatment work under multiple Agreed Orders — represent costs the historical carriers may be obligated both to recover and to fund going forward.
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.
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.
