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 recover the cleanup costs already paid.

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.

The petroleum release at LUST #1826 originated from underground storage tanks that, based on the investigation timeline — a Phase III study was already underway by 1991, with earlier phases preceding it — were very likely installed and operating before 1986. Carriers who issued occurrence-based CGL policies to The Hyster Company during that pre-1986 operational window covered precisely this type of slow petroleum release without an effective pollution exclusion, and the decade of documented remediation expenditures between the 1991 investigation and the 2001 No Further Action determination represents cleanup costs those historical policies 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.