CatIQ raises Aug 2024 Calgary hailstorm loss to almost C$3.3bn

By Chris Munro

Feb 11 - (The Insurer) - Losses from the hailstorm that hammered Calgary, Alberta on 5 August last year are now expected to cost (re)insurers C$3.25bn ($2.27bn), according to CatIQ.

The update from CatIQ is the fourth estimate for the hailstorm to be issued by the Perils-owned risk modeller, and represents a more than 10 percent increase on its third estimate of C$2.95bn, which was issued 90 days after the event.

CatIQ’s loss number covers both commercial and residential property, along with vehicle/motor claims and other additional loss adjustment expenses.

A fifth and final loss estimate for the Calgary hailstorm will be issued exactly 12 months after the event began.

“While the storm itself was not unusually severe for the region, the extent of the damage and the scale of the industry loss total reflect how the distance of a few kilometres in the track can result in tremendous loss differences when it comes to severe convective storm,” said Laura Twidle, CatIQ’s president and CEO.

“There was nothing apparent about the storm from a meteorological standpoint to suggest it would result in one of the costliest events in Canadian history,” she added.

Canada suffered its worst ever year for insured catastrophe losses in 2024, with the industry taking a more than C$8.5bn hit.

Four events drove the majority of those losses: the Calgary hailstorm, which ranks as the second most costly catastrophe event for insured losses in Canada’s history; the remnants of Hurricane Debby, the third most costly; the Jasper wildfire, ninth; and the flooding in southern Ontario, 10th.

“While the majority of those losses stemmed from four events in July and August, of the year’s 12 total events, one quarter involved hail damage – an important reminder of the industry’s exposure to this peril,” said Twidle.

“In the past five years, CatIQ has declared 30 catastrophes relating to hail with losses exceeding C$30mn, accounting together for more than C$8bn in insured losses for the industry,” she added.