This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1949. 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 contamination at this property traces to underground storage tanks installed and operated beginning in 1949 — more than three decades before 1986, when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies ceased reliably covering pollution claims. The BTEX and TPH-G contamination documented in groundwater over a thirty-year monitoring period represents the type of gradual release that pre-1986 CGL policies were written to address. Historical carriers who issued policies during the Wascher Mobil station's 1949–1984 operational window may be obligated to recover the investigation and monitoring costs incurred to bring this site to closure.

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.