This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station predating 1986. Historical insurance policies issued during operations at this property and through 1986 could recover the cleanup costs already paid.
This property was originally developed as the Pierce County Transit vehicle maintenance and fueling facility, equipped with ten petroleum underground storage tanks, two oil/water separators, six service pits, hydraulic hoists, and chemical storage areas. Pierce Transit operations on the property ceased in 1987, and the current Shell station's underground storage tanks were installed in 1995. Site investigation under the Voluntary Cleanup Program identified polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, benzene, and petroleum hydrocarbons in groundwater; the site has since achieved No Further Action status. 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.
The petroleum contamination detected in groundwater at this property — PAHs, benzene, and gasoline-range hydrocarbons — traces to a transit vehicle maintenance and fueling operation that was active well before 1986. Occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies issued to Pierce County Transit during those pre-1986 operating years carried no effective pollution exclusion under Washington law. The remediation expenditures required to bring this site to No Further Action status represent costs that the historical carriers who insured those transit operations may still be obligated to cover.
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
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Contact UsThis analysis is preliminary and based on publicly available records. Restorical Research is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice.