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 help fund the ongoing cleanup and groundwater monitoring obligations that Wisconsin DNR continues to oversee.
This property operated as a gasoline service station with steel underground storage tanks whose construction type and contamination history place their original installation in the late 1960s to 1970s. A previous LUST case opened in 1992 documented TCE and chlorinated solvent contamination already present at that time, and that case closed in 2000 with a deed restriction for residual soil contamination and continuing obligations. The current case has confirmed severe petroleum contamination, with benzene in saturated-zone soils exceeding Wisconsin DNR NR 720 soil-to-groundwater residual contaminant levels by roughly 80 times and total xylenes by nearly 100 times, and groundwater contamination has been confirmed at a depth of five to six feet below ground surface. 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.
Petroleum storage and dispensing operations at this property date to the late 1960s and 1970s, when steel underground storage tanks were first installed and fueling activities began more than a decade before 1986. The ongoing site investigation, soil remediation to address benzene and total xylene concentrations exceeding Wisconsin DNR NR 720 soil-to-groundwater residual contaminant levels by orders of magnitude, groundwater cleanup, and continued compliance with the existing deed restriction represent substantial future costs that carriers insuring the businesses that operated here before 1986 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.