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.

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.

Underground storage tank operations at this property — including decades of fueling and degreasing activities that produced both petroleum and chlorinated solvent contamination — were well established before 1986, as confirmed by a WDNR LUST case opened at the same address in 1987. The continued groundwater investigation, ongoing monitoring at wells where benzene, ethylbenzene, naphthalene, toluene, and total xylenes exceed NR 140 standards, and the remediation required to address residual soil and groundwater contamination all represent future costs that CGL carriers insuring pre-1986 operations at this site 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.