TORONTO – A new report says the cost of insured damage caused by severe weather last year hit a record high as it totalled more than $8 billion.
According to Catastrophe Indices and Quantification Inc., the cost of insured damage totalled $8.55 billion for 2024, topping the previous record of $6.2 billion from 2016 when wildfires tore through Fort McMurray, Alta.
The Insurance Bureau of Canada says the summer of 2024 stood out as the most destructive season in Canadian history for insured losses.
The season saw $3 billion in damages related to a hailstorm in Calgary that saw hailstones as big as golf balls hammer the city’s airport in August, damaging aircraft and forcing airlines to ground planes for repairs and inspections.
August 2024 also saw the remnants of Hurricane Debby do $2.7 billion in insured damage as half a million residents in Quebec had their power knocked out.
The Jasper wildfire caused $1.1 billion in insured damage in July and August.
IBC said in a news release that severe weather-related losses are escalating across Canada and are having a disproportionate impact on home insurance costs.
“As insurers price for risk, this increased risk is now impacting insurance affordability and availability,” Craig Stewart, IBC’s vice-president of climate change and federal issues, said in the release.
He called on governments to be more proactive by investing in flood-defensive infrastructure, ensuring homes aren’t built on flood plains, and making other changes that would protect people and their homes from extreme weather events.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 13, 2025.
