This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1950. 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 from the early 1950s through the early 1970s, then as a tire repair shop until 1979, when the building was remodeled as a bank. Two underground storage tanks — a 10,000-gallon and an 8,000-gallon tank used to store gasoline — were identified on the property. Groundwater monitoring wells revealed exceedances of MTCA cleanup levels for gasoline-range TPH, diesel/oil-range TPH, and BTEX compounds including benzene. An interim cleanup action was completed under the Voluntary Cleanup Program, and the site received a No Further Action opinion from Ecology. 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.
Gasoline storage and dispensing operations at this property began in the early 1950s and continued for roughly two decades, squarely within the era when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies carried no effective pollution exclusion. The petroleum contamination detected in groundwater here traces to underground storage tanks that were installed and operated during that pre-1986 policy window. Historical carriers who provided CGL coverage during the station's operating years may still bear obligation for the remediation costs incurred to bring the property to MTCA standards.
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.