This property has a documented history as a bulk fuel distribution terminal going back to 1927. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could recover the cleanup costs already paid.
This property operated as a bulk fuel plant from 1927, with facilities renovated in 1958 to include five aboveground storage tanks, three underground storage tanks, aboveground distribution lines, a loading dock, warehouse, and drum storage area. The plant closed in 1982, and between 1982 and 1995 all underground and aboveground improvements — USTs, ASTs, pumps, loading racks, slabs, fuel lines, and a building — were removed from six separate areas on the property. Groundwater contamination including gasoline, diesel, and BTEX exceeded MTCA Method A cleanup levels from 1991 through 2011, and the site achieved No Further Action status under the Voluntary Cleanup Program. 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 property originated from bulk fuel storage and distribution operations that ran for 55 years — from 1927 through 1982 — entirely before 1986. Occurrence-based CGL policies issued to the operators during that window carried no effective pollution exclusion and remain enforceable in Washington. The documented remediation expenditures — removal of tanks, pumps, fuel lines, and structures across six areas, plus two decades of groundwater monitoring addressing gasoline, diesel, and BTEX contamination — represent costs that historical carriers may be obligated to recover.
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.