A copper feed line beneath the foundation floor of one of our commercial property insureds permitted the release of #2 heating oil into the soil.

Is there coverage for the cleanup of the oil (as debris) and/or the cost to access and replace that part of the dwelling necessarily removed to repair the feed line and remove the contaminated soil? The form involved is the ISO CP 00 10 10 90

Massachusetts Subscriber

There is no cleanup or debris removal coverage for the property described in your scenario where heating oil leaks from beneath the foundation feed line and pollutes adjacent ground.

The CP 00 10 policy (2. Property Not Covered, part M) specifically makes underground pipes noncovered property. Debris removal and pollutant cleanup and removal coverage is triggered by damage from a covered cause of loss. Of course, three levels of covered causes of loss forms are available: basic, broad, and special. There are no causes of loss in the basic or broad forms that reach damage of this type; in the special COL form, the "wear and tear" exclusion eliminates coverage for corrosion of pipe.

The CP 00 10 form, with any of the COL forms attached, would not respond to a loss of this type.

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