This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1982. 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 — formerly known as B & K Market Service Station — with dispenser islands built in 1982 and underground storage tanks serving the facility from at least that year. The original USTs were removed and replaced in 1991, and site investigations identified a groundwater contamination plume containing diesel-range and gasoline-range hydrocarbons, MTBE, and lead discharging to nearby Kosh Creek. Remediation under the Voluntary Cleanup Program brought all contaminants below cleanup levels, and the Washington Department of Ecology issued a No Further Action determination in May 2010. 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 site originated from underground storage tanks and dispenser infrastructure installed in 1982 or earlier — years before the 1986 shift away from occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies. The documented remediation costs required to address diesel, gasoline, MTBE, and lead contamination in groundwater — including UST replacement, plume investigation, and cleanup to regulatory standards — were incurred to resolve releases tied directly to those pre-1986 fueling operations. Historical carriers who issued CGL policies during the station's early operational years may still be obligated to recover those expenditures.
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.