This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1950. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could recover the cleanup costs already paid.
This property operated as a gasoline station from at least the 1950s through the 1970s, with six underground storage tanks — ranging from 150 to 1,000 gallons and holding gasoline and kerosene — installed as early as the 1940s. A 2018 Remedial Investigation confirmed petroleum contamination in groundwater, with gasoline concentrations reaching 11,000 µg/L. The USTs were removed or closed in place in 2001 under the Voluntary Cleanup Program, and the site has since received a No Further Action determination from Ecology. 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.
Gasoline storage and dispensing at this site began decades before 1986, with tanks installed by the 1940s and continuous station operations running through the 1970s. The petroleum contamination documented in groundwater — the direct legacy of those pre-1986 operations — required investigation, tank closure, and long-term monitoring through the Voluntary Cleanup Program. Occurrence-based CGL policies in effect during those decades of operation carried no effective pollution exclusion and may obligate historical carriers to recover the remediation expenditures tied to this 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.