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 underground storage tanks that were the subject of a LUST case reported to Wisconsin DNR in 1992, which was closed in 2003 with continuing obligations and residual petroleum contamination left in place. A 2024 Tank System Site Assessment found current contamination concentrations significantly exceeding the residuals from the original investigation, and groundwater sampling during UST removal in December 2023 confirmed benzene at 37.4 µg/L — more than seven times the NR 140 Enforcement Standard — along with naphthalene and 1,3,5-trimethylbenzene exceeding their respective Wisconsin DNR screening levels. The site remains an open LUST case under active Wisconsin DNR oversight, with investigation and remediation work ahead. 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.
Fueling operations and underground storage tank use at this property were well established before 1986, creating the petroleum contamination that a 2024 Tank System Site Assessment confirmed still substantially exceeds Wisconsin DNR enforcement standards, including benzene in groundwater at more than seven times the NR 140 Enforcement Standard. The site investigation, remediation, and compliance monitoring required under the Wisconsin DNR LUST program to resolve this ongoing contamination represent 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.