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CTV News
a day ago
- Business
- CTV News
Better disaster recovery needed as frequency grows: insurance bureau
Workers continue to assess, repair and rebuild as some residents return to Jasper, Alberta on Monday August 19, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Amber Bracken TORONTO — The Insurance Bureau of Canada is calling for national discussions about how to better manage rebuilding after disasters as their cost and frequency grow. The bureau is asking the federal government to lead talks with provinces on disaster recovery as efforts to rebuild Jasper, Alta., encounter delays a year after a wildfire destroyed about a third of the town's buildings. The calls come as July 22 marks one year of the Jasper wildfire, which caused an estimated $1.2 billion in insured damage. It was just one of several disasters last year that caused about $8.5 billion in combined insured damage to make it by far the costliest year on record. Costs have climbed as climate change has helped make extreme weather events more frequent and damaging, while the cost of building materials and other factors have also contributed to the increase. The higher costs of rebuilding also comes as it's taking longer to get repairs going. Almost a year after the Jasper wildfire, IBC says officials have only issued rebuilding permits for 56 of the 358 buildings that burned down. The rebuild is going much slower than it did after the 2016 Fort McMurray wildfire, which saw much of the reconstruction start within the first year, despite it being the most costly wildfire event in Canadian history with some 2,400 structures destroyed. 'Delays that prolong the rebuilding process, like we are seeing in Jasper, are occurring more frequently in Canada after large catastrophic events,' said Craig Stewart, vice-president of climate change and federal issues at IBC, in a release issued ahead of the one-year anniversary. As delays in Jasper continue, the bureau is warning that some residents could run out of additional living expenses coverage and many businesses could use up their business interruption coverage. Part of the issue on delays is the added regulation from the town being in a national park and the extra remediation rules, but Stewart said a lack of co-ordinated and standardized response is also an issue. 'Canada needs a federal co-ordinating agency to guide emergency preparedness and recovery," he said. "Every other G7 country has an agency operating in this capacity – it's time for Canada to follow suit and take on a proactive approach to emergency management.' The insurance association also called for government to better support community wildfire protection initiatives such as firebreaks and limits to new buildings in unprotected high-risk areas. This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 21, 2025. The Canadian Press
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Better disaster recovery needed as frequency grows: insurance bureau
The Insurance Bureau of Canada is calling for national discussions about how to better manage rebuilding after disasters as their cost and frequency grow. The bureau is asking the federal government to lead talks with provinces on disaster recovery as efforts to rebuild Jasper, Alta., encounter delays a year after a wildfire destroyed about a third of the town's buildings. IBC says that as of July 7, officials have only issued rebuilding permits for 56 of the 358 buildings that burned down, a much slower process than after the 2016 Fort McMurray wildfires. Part of the complication is the added regulation from the town being in a national park, but IBC says a lack of co-ordinated and standardized response is also an issue. Craig Stewart, vice-president of climate change and federal issues at IBC, says delays in rebuilding are happening more frequently after major disasters so there needs to be more co-ordination such as a central agency to help manage the recovery. The calls come as July 22 marks one year from when the Jasper wildfire caused an estimated $1.2 billion in insured damage, just one of several disasters last year that caused about $8.5 billion in combined insured damage. This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 21, 2025. The Canadian Press
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Burning cash: Sask. insurance agencies dealing with glut of wildfire insurance claims
As wildfires continue to tear through northern Saskatchewan, insurance companies are starting to feel the heat. Insurance companies expect the fire season to run April to September. But while they often affect less-populated areas farther north, this year that has not entirely been the case, said Emily Proulx, branch manager for Hub International in Prince Albert. Proulx said she has noticed an uptick in claims made across the province from areas like Denare Beach, La Ronge and Flin Flon. While most people tend to purchase coverage for their homes, not everyone understands the full scope of it, especially when it comes to emergency situations. Many insurance companies have a moratorium during certain seasons, including wildfire season, when coverage cannot be changed or increased, Proulx said. She said fire insurance cannot be added if a fire is already burning within a certain distance of a property or there is a "threat." Proulx used Candle Lake as an example. "There's a fire burning within that 50 kilometres or whatever," she said. "There's no negotiation with the insurance company to say, 'Can you add coverage?' The answer is flat out 'no.'" Knowing your policy Craig Stewart, vice-president of climate change and federal issues for the Insurance Bureau of Canada, said the priority is "making sure that our customers are prepared and that the people that need insurance can still get it and that the insurance coverages are what people need." "Most people expect it never to happen to them, so it's very important to be prepared in case it does," Stewart said. That includes taking photographs and inventory of what's in your home and identifying what is most valuable. "If you get to the point where you need to unfortunately evacuate, file a claim … sometimes you can't get back to your home to be able to demonstrate what was there," Stewart said. He said most people who have "full replacement value" in their policy can have their homes rebuilt. 700 wildfire related claims, SGI Canada says Since May, there have been close to 700 wildfire-related claims made to SGI Canada involving mass evacuation claims, total loss of house, cabin fires or houses with fire damage that are still standing. SGI Canada said its auto fund has also received more than 300 claims, with most being a total loss. "It's too early to tell what kind of impact this wildfire season will have, but as extreme weather events become more frequent and severe, the insurance industry as a whole will be affected," said a spokesperson for SGI Canada in an email to CBC. "Losses due to wildfires, floods, wind and hailstorms continue to trend upwards. Mitigation measures and construction resiliency will be key to stabilizing insurance rates going forward."
CTV News
5 days ago
- Business
- CTV News
How wildfires could play a role in future insurance premiums
The Izman Creek fire burning north of Lytton, B.C. is seen in this handout photo on Wednesday, July 2, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Handout — BC Wildfire Service (Mandatory Credit) One wildfire might not make a difference on insurance rates. But hundreds of wildfires burning across the country could. 'No single event affects a home insurance premium,' said Craig Stewart, vice-president of Climate Change and Federal Issues with the Insurance Bureau of Canada. Insurance premiums are based on trends in particular parts of the country, Stewart explained. Prices have been rising in recent years due to the increased risk associated with more wildfires, extreme flooding and hailstorms. 'It's the aggregate of these events, really, that has had an impact on home insurance prices,' he said, adding the increased costs to rebuild homes due to inflation is also a factor. Nationally, home insurance premiums were up 4.8 per cent year-over-year from June 2024 to June 2025, according to Statistics Canada. Quebec's premiums stayed the same. Provinces like Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick saw slight increases of 0.9 per cent. Alberta experienced the largest jump at 11.6 per cent. 'Alberta is unfortunately the riskiest place to insure in the country,' Stewart said. 'That's just the result of the floods, the hailstorms and the wildfires that we've seen in recent years there.' In Saskatchewan, home insurance premiums went up 5.7 per cent, the third highest increase behind Alberta and Manitoba (6.4 per cent). There have been upwards of 700 wildfire-related claims made involving evacuations, total losses and smoke damage in Saskatchewan so far this year, according to SGI Canada. A spokesperson for the insurance company said it's too soon to tell how this wildfire season will impact insurance rates. 'As extreme weather events become more frequent and severe, the insurance industry as a whole will be affected,' SGI Canada said in a statement. 'Losses due to wildfires, floods, wind and hailstorms continue to trend upwards. Mitigation measures and construction resiliency will be key to stabilizing insurance rates going forward.' Stewart doesn't foresee any exceptional challenges for insurers handling this year's wildfire claims. Insurers have the capacity, he said, unlike last year, when a monsoon of claims created problems. Last year, Canadian insurers received 250,000 claims within a five-week period, according to Stewart, largely driven by Calgary's hailstorm, the Jasper wildfire, remnants of Hurricane Debby in southern Quebec and flooding in southern Ontario. 'That definitely had an impact on getting claims resolved,' he said. 'It exceeded the industry's capacity to deal with them in a timely manner.' Denare Beach, Sask., has experienced some of the worst damage this wildfire season, losing 300 of its 413 homes last month. SGI Canada told CTV News emergency response measures are in place to help respond to catastrophic events, so an influx in wildfire claims won't bog down its ability to provide services. Calls for standardized recovery response The Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) says a central emergency management agency is needed to help with disaster recovery efforts whether destruction takes place in a municipality, national park or Indigenous community. Less than a fifth of properties destroyed in the Jasper wildfire have received the appropriate permits and approvals to move forward with rebuilding, according to IBC, since flames decimated 358 buildings almost a year ago. 'The issue in Jasper is part of a trend that we've been seeing across the country in recent years. We're pretty good at emergency response. We're not very good at all at recovery,' Stewart said. 'Each time, these communities have to create a new playbook for a disaster.' Stewart says homeowners and businesses should be able to get 'back on their feet' within two years of a disaster. He classified that as a 'timely manner' and said the Fort McMurray and Tantallon wildfire recoveries are examples that it is possible. On Wednesday, Parks Canada and the Canadian Red Cross announced up to $5 million in additional supports for Jasper residents who require contaminated soil testing and removal prior to rebuilding permanent housing. The same day, the Saskatchewan government committed $1.8 million for cleanup and debris management efforts in Denare Beach.
CTV News
15-07-2025
- Climate
- CTV News
Four years since powerful storm unleashed fury in Barrie neighbourhood
Damage to a home on Majesty Boulevard in Barrie after an EF-2 tornado struck the neighbourhood on Thu., July 15, 2021. (CTV News) Tuesday marks four years since a powerful storm, with winds topping 210 kilometres per hour, caused mass damage in a Barrie neighbourhood. A sneak attack, Environment Canada called it, that left destruction in its wake. July 15, 2021, an EF-2 tornado tore through the south east end of the city for roughly 10 to 15 unnerving and terrifying minutes as residents hunkered down where they could, waiting for it to end. Experts reported the destructive storm tracked across an area 12.5 kilometres long and 510 metres wide. Dozens of residents were displaced after their homes were deemed unsafe, an outcome that would carry over several years for some. The storm prompted researchers to explore why so many houses were torn apart, with a focus on strengthening builds to avoid this in the future. Experts have since called on builders to install hurricane straps to help homes better withstand severe winds and prevent roofs from being easily ripped away. According to the Insurance Bureau of Canada, the tornado resulted in more than 2,200 insurance claims, amounting to over $100 million in damage. Officials said 11 people were injured. New information has been released since that day, with Northern Tornadoes Project (NTP) reporting the Barrie EF-2 tornado was just one of nine to touch down across Ontario. NTP also reports the July 2021 Barrie twister was the second most powerful of the 100 tornadoes documented across Canada that year, just slightly behind the May 25 storm that hit Petit Lac Bull Rock in Quebec with wind speeds of 215 km/h.
