This property has a documented history as a industrial and manufacturing facility going back to 1914. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations 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.

Industrial operations at this Everett property span continuously from at least 1914 through and well past the pre-1986 occurrence-based CGL era, with metal coating and manufacturing activities firmly established by the late 1970s and early 1980s. The contamination profile — metals, solvents, PCBs, and petroleum products detected in groundwater — is consistent with the types of industrial releases that occurrence-based policies written during that window were designed to cover. Documented remediation obligations under the Agreed Order, and the prospect of further cleanup expenditures at this active Standard Cleanup site, represent liabilities that historical carriers who underwrote these operations before 1986 may be obligated to fund.

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.