This property has a documented history as a industrial and manufacturing facility predating 1986. 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.

Industrial port operations at this location date to the early 1900s — decades before 1986, when occurrence-based CGL policies still covered pollution claims without an effective exclusion. The contamination profile at Building 2601 — arsenic, lead, mercury, and petroleum hydrocarbons in groundwater, with PAHs in soil — is consistent with long-term industrial activity that would have been ongoing during the coverage period of those historical policies. As cleanup costs under the Standard Cleanup program accumulate, historical carriers who insured the port's operations during the pre-1986 window may be obligated both to recover past expenditures and to fund the remediation ahead.

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.