This property has a documented history as an industrial and manufacturing facility going back to 1946. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could help fund the multi-phase investigation and remediation work ahead under Wisconsin DNR oversight.
This property has been in industrial use since approximately 1946, with metal products manufacturing operations that historically used chlorinated solvents, methyl ethyl ketone, and aromatic hydrocarbons stored in underground and aboveground tanks, drums, and totes. Groundwater sampling across an extensive monitoring well network has confirmed trichloroethylene (TCE) at concentrations exceeding 21,000 ppb — more than 4,000 times the Wisconsin enforcement standard of 5 ppb — along with dichloroethylene (DCE) up to 40,500 ppb and vinyl chloride up to 1,460 ppb, with the groundwater plume flowing northwest toward a tributary creek that drains into the Rock River. An in-situ bio-sparge remediation system operated from 2004 through 2014 and intermittently through 2020, a sub-slab vapor mitigation system was installed in 2018, and the site remains an active Wisconsin DNR Environmental Remediation Program case with investigation and remediation continuing. That history could support an insurance coverage claim against the carriers who issued policies more than 40 years ago — coverage that could help fund the cleanup ahead.
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 Wisconsin — and those policies may provide coverage that remains enforceable today. 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.
Metal products manufacturing operations at this site began in the mid-1940s and continued for decades before 1986, with chlorinated solvent use and underground storage tank operations placing the contaminating activity squarely in the pre-1986 window. The ongoing groundwater remediation, vapor mitigation, surface water monitoring, and remaining cleanup work under Wisconsin DNR oversight represent future costs that those historical carriers may be obligated to fund.
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
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.