This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1964. 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.

Petroleum operations at this station began in 1964 — more than two decades before occurrence-based CGL policies gave way to claims-made forms with absolute pollution exclusions. The benzene contamination found in groundwater is directly traceable to those decades of pre-1986 fueling operations, and the remediation costs incurred to address it — including ORC injection to restore groundwater quality — represent expenditures that historical carriers who covered this station during its early operational years may still 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.