This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1960. Historical insurance policies issued during operations at this property and through 1986 could recover the cleanup costs already paid.
Fuel operations at this Stevens Pass property date to at least 1960, when a Mini Mart station was constructed with underground storage tanks installed in 1964. The current vehicle maintenance facility was built in 1980 with its own USTs, which were replaced in 1988. Petroleum diesel and gasoline have been detected in groundwater at the site, and cleanup proceeded through the Voluntary Cleanup Program, culminating in a No Further Action determination. 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.
Petroleum releases from USTs installed at this property in 1964 and 1980 — more than two decades before occurrence-based CGL policies gave way to claims-made forms with pollution exclusions — created the contamination now documented in groundwater beneath Stevens Pass. The operators who fueled the Mini Mart and maintained ski-resort vehicles during those years likely held CGL policies that covered exactly this type of gradual petroleum release. The cleanup costs incurred to reach the No Further Action milestone may be recoverable from the historical carriers whose policies were in force when those tanks were first put into service.
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.