This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1938. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could recover the cleanup costs already paid.
Yarrow Bay Marina has occupied this Lake Washington shoreline property since at least 1938, operating as a boat repair and fueling facility with underground storage tanks for gasoline and diesel. Two USTs — an 8,000-gallon gasoline tank and a 1,750-gallon diesel tank — were removed in March 2008. Groundwater testing identified petroleum hydrocarbons, benzene, BTEX compounds, and lead, and sediment near the shoreline bulkhead was suspected to be impacted. The site entered the Voluntary Cleanup Program and has received a No Further Action determination. 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.
Fueling operations at this marina date to the late 1930s — nearly five decades before the 1986 shift away from occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies. The petroleum and lead contamination found in groundwater here traces directly to those decades of pre-1986 tank operations, and the underground storage tanks removed in 2008 were likely installed well before 1986 given standard tank lifecycles. Historical carriers who issued CGL policies during the marina's long pre-1986 operational window may still be obligated to recover the cleanup costs incurred to reach the site's No Further Action status.
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
Stay up to date on environmental property cleanup laws and changes.
Report Email Updates
Request more information on this property
Contact UsThis analysis is preliminary and based on publicly available records. Restorical Research is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice.