This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1986. Historical insurance policies issued during operations at this property and through 1986 could fund a cleanup — and recover costs already spent.
This property has operated as a gasoline service station since at least 1986, currently featuring four dispenser islands and four 12,000-gallon underground storage tanks for unleaded gasoline and diesel. In 1993, petroleum contamination — TPH-G, TPH-D, and BTEX — was discovered near the dispenser islands and UST fill ports, and approximately 20 cubic yards of impacted soil were excavated and disposed of off-site. Groundwater monitoring from 1993 through 2014 showed contamination levels reaching compliance, suggesting successful natural attenuation or prior remediation; the site remains in the Voluntary Cleanup Program with cleanup formally in progress. 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 releases from USTs installed in 1986 and fuel-dispensing infrastructure in continuous operation since at least that year generated remediation expenditures spanning more than two decades — soil excavation, groundwater monitoring from 1993 through 2014, and ongoing Voluntary Cleanup Program obligations still open today. Occurrence-based CGL policies in effect when this station's tanks were installed and its petroleum releases began would have covered exactly the type of gradual subsurface contamination documented here. Historical carriers who insured the station during the period of release may bear obligations both for the documented remediation costs and for any further cleanup required to close the site.
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.
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.