This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1966. 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.

Petroleum contamination at this site traces to service-station operations that began at least two decades before 1986, when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies were the industry standard and carried no effective pollution exclusion. The documented groundwater contamination — TPH-G and benzene well above MTCA Method A cleanup levels — represents the kind of gradual release from long-term fueling operations that those pre-1986 policies were written to cover. With cleanup still underway, historical carriers who insured the station during that operational window may be obligated both to recover past remediation costs and to fund the work 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.