This property has a documented history as a industrial and manufacturing facility predating 1986. Historical insurance policies issued during operations at this property and through 1986 could fund a cleanup — and recover costs already spent.

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 contamination at this yard — PCBs, halogenated organics, metals, and petroleum hydrocarbons — is consistent with decades of industrial railroad operations that predate 1986, when occurrence-based CGL policies carried no effective pollution exclusion. Petroleum diesel remains confirmed above cleanup levels in groundwater, meaning remediation costs continue to accrue. Historical carriers who issued CGL policies to the yard's operators during that pre-1986 window may be obligated both to recover past cleanup expenditures and to fund the remediation work still ahead.

Restorical's role is to locate viable historical policies, determine whether a successful coverage claim is possible, and assist our clients and their legal counsel to obtain insurance coverage. Restorical then manages the claim, including accounting, to ensure the cleanup is funded in a timely manner.