This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station 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 contamination here originated from underground storage tanks associated with Unocal's retail fueling network, which was predominantly established during the 1960s through 1980s — well within the era of occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies that carried no effective pollution exclusion in Washington. The remediation expenditures incurred to address UST releases in soil, groundwater, and surface water and achieve the 1998 No Further Action determination are the type of cleanup costs those pre-1986 policies were written to cover. Historical carriers who insured the operators during the period of tank installation and use may still be obligated to reimburse those costs.

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.