This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1938. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could recover the cleanup costs already paid.
This property has operated as a gasoline service station since at least 1938, when Chevron began fueling operations at the site. Standard Oil operated from 1953 to 1973, and two 750-gallon leaded gasoline underground storage tanks present since approximately 1964 were removed in 1995. Three 12,000-gallon USTs were installed in 1979, and Southland Corporation — 7-Eleven's parent company — purchased the property in 1986. The site entered Washington's Voluntary Cleanup Program and has since received a No Further Action determination. That history could support an insurance cost recovery claim against carriers who issued insurance policies 40+ years ago.
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 site — lead, benzene, and petroleum hydrocarbons detected in groundwater — traces to gasoline storage and dispensing operations that began nearly five decades before 1986. Occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies issued to the successive operators during that pre-1986 window carried no effective pollution exclusion under Washington law. The remediation expenditures incurred to bring this property to No Further Action status represent costs that historical carriers who covered those decades of fuel operations may still be obligated to reimburse.
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.
Recovering Costs from an Older Cleanup
If this site reached No Further Action years ago, the original cleanup expenditures may be difficult to reconstruct. Restorical's forensic accounting team specializes in re-establishing and documenting past cleanup costs — even decades later — to build the strongest possible basis for an insurance recovery claim.
What We Look For
- Historical insurance policies (pre-1986)
- Policy numbers, carrier names, and coverage periods
- Connection between contamination timing and policy period
- Evidence linking cleanup obligation to insured activity
What We Deliver
- Historical Coverage Chart
- Trigger Analysis & Property/Policy Nexus
- Coverage strategy with recommendations
- Insurance funding for your remediation
- Claims Management & Forensic Accounting
The Restorical Proven Process
Stay up to date on environmental property cleanup laws and changes.
Report Email Updates
Request more information on this property
Contact UsThis analysis is preliminary and based on publicly available records. Restorical Research is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice.