This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1935. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could recover the cleanup costs already paid.
This property operated as a gasoline service station from at least 1935 until 1967, with structures on the parcel dating to 1930. Two unregistered single-wall steel underground storage tanks — a 1,200-gallon and a 750-gallon tank — were discovered and removed during excavation in March 2013. Remediation under the Voluntary Cleanup Program included the pumping and off-site disposal of approximately 7,700 gallons of contaminated groundwater, addressing petroleum and benzene contamination that had persisted beneath the property for decades. The site received a No Further Action determination; the current building, constructed in 1969, operates as a Baskin-Robbins ice cream shop. 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 contamination at this property — gasoline, diesel, benzene, and lead in groundwater — originated from service station operations that ran continuously from at least 1935 through 1967, entirely within the era of occurrence-based Commercial General Liability coverage. The underground storage tanks left in place after the station closed remained a contamination source for decades, and the remediation costs incurred to remove those tanks and pump thousands of gallons of contaminated groundwater are the type of expenditures historical CGL carriers may be obligated to reimburse.
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.