This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1965. 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.

Gasoline storage and dispensing operations at this property began in 1965 — more than two decades before occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies gave way to claims-made forms with pollution exclusions. The groundwater contamination documented here — benzene, petroleum hydrocarbons, and non-halogenated solvents — traces to underground storage tanks that were in service during that pre-1986 window. The remediation costs incurred to achieve the site's No Further Action status may be recoverable from historical carriers whose CGL policies were in force when these releases first occurred.

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.