This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station predating 1986. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could recover the cleanup costs already paid.
This property operated as a fueling facility with underground storage tanks that were in service by at least 1997 and removed during an Independent Remedial Action Plan in 2006. In 1997, approximately 1,500 gallons of diesel fuel leaked from a faulty gauge on an underground storage tank, prompting a release notification filed on August 25, 1997. A subsequent investigation found free product in groundwater and a petroleum sheen in Fidalgo Bay in January 1998, confirming off-site contaminant migration. The site has since received a No Further Action determination under Washington's cleanup program. 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 underground storage tanks at the Marine Service Center were decommissioned in 2006 and, based on standard tank lifecycles, were very likely installed before 1986 — the year occurrence-based CGL policies stopped reliably covering pollution claims. The petroleum contamination documented here — benzene, diesel, and gasoline constituents in groundwater, with free product migrating off-site to Fidalgo Bay — traces directly to operations during that pre-1986 policy window. Historical carriers who provided CGL coverage when these tanks were first installed and operating may still be obligated to recover the investigation and remediation costs incurred at the site.
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.