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.

Contamination at this former lumber mill — metals, petroleum products, and arsenic confirmed in groundwater — is consistent with decades of industrial operations that predate 1986, when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies were still the industry standard. The cleanup costs this property faces, from investigation through remediation of confirmed groundwater contamination, are the type of environmental liabilities those pre-1986 policies were written to cover. Historical carriers who provided CGL coverage during the mill's operating years may bear obligations to fund the remediation work 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.