This property has a documented history as a property with a heating oil tank going back to 1900. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could fund a cleanup — and recover costs already spent.

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 Planters Hotel's heating oil tanks operated for decades before 1986, the year occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies gave way to claims-made forms with absolute pollution exclusions. Contamination from those tanks — petroleum hydrocarbons and PAHs now confirmed above cleanup levels in groundwater — is the product of releases that began during an era when CGL policies routinely covered such liabilities without a pollution carve-out. The remediation costs already incurred and those still ahead represent expenditures that historical carriers who insured the property during its pre-1986 operations 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.