This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1970. Historical insurance policies issued during operations at this property and through 1986 could recover the cleanup costs already paid.
This property has operated as a gas station and convenience store since at least 1970, when three underground storage tanks — two 10,000-gallon and one 5,000-gallon, epoxy-lined steel construction — were installed for petroleum storage. A 2011 Remedial Investigation and Feasibility Study by Aspect Consulting documented benzene and petroleum-gasoline contamination in groundwater, with one tank found to have developed a liner crack by 2009 after roughly 39 years of service. The site was enrolled in the Voluntary Cleanup Program and has since achieved No Further Action status. 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.
The underground storage tanks at this property were installed in 1970 — sixteen years before occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies gave way to claims-made forms with absolute pollution exclusions. Petroleum releases from those tanks contaminated groundwater with benzene and gasoline constituents, triggering investigation and remediation under the Voluntary Cleanup Program. Historical carriers who wrote CGL policies covering this gas station during its pre-1986 operational window may still be obligated to recover the cleanup costs incurred to bring the site to its current No Further Action status.
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.