This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1939. 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 tanks have dispensed petroleum products at this property since at least the late 1930s — as documented by 1939 and 1945 Sanborn fire insurance maps — placing decades of fueling operations well before 1986. The groundwater investigation targeting petroleum volatile organic compounds and trichloroethylene in public rights-of-way, vapor intrusion assessment, and remediation of contamination migrating toward the Wolf River under the active Wisconsin DNR LUST program represent future and ongoing costs that the pre-1986 carriers for the businesses that operated here 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.