This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1966. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could recover the cleanup costs already paid.
This property housed fuel storage and dispensing operations beginning in 1966, when the on-site building was constructed per Snohomish County Assessor records, with two underground storage tanks — one diesel, one gasoline — serving the facility. The property owner removed both USTs in the early to mid-1980s; subsequent site investigations under the Standard Cleanup program identified lead and diesel-range petroleum contamination in groundwater beneath the property. The site has since received a No Further Action determination from Ecology. 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.
Underground fuel storage at this property began in 1966, placing two full decades of tank operations within the pre-1986 window when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies carried no effective pollution exclusion. The lead and petroleum contamination detected in groundwater here traces directly to that fuel-dispensing infrastructure installed and operated during that era. Historical carriers who issued CGL policies to the operators during the 1966-through-mid-1980s period may still bear obligation for the investigation and remediation costs incurred to bring the site to its No Further Action status.
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.