Severe Weather Centre
One reliable source for insurance information following severe weather events.
- Latest severe weather events
- Severe weather help
- Past severe weather events
- The cost of severe weather in Canada
- What we’re doing about the cost of severe weather
Helping you stay informed and protected
From knowing how your insurance helps you recover and rebuild to answering your frequently asked insurance questions, we have all the information you need in one place.
Latest severe weather events
Get all the information you need about the most recent severe weather events in your region and across the country.
Severe weather help
- Customer Information Centre
- CAMP (Community Assistance Mobile Pavilion)
- Severe Weather Insurance FAQs
Customer Information Centre
Our expert staff are ready to answer your questions about insurance following severe weather events. From helping you understand how to file a claim to resolving insurance disputes, our Information Officers are here for you.
1-844-2ask-IBC (1-844-227-5422)
M-F 8:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. EST
CAMP (Community Assistance Mobile Pavilion)
Our Community Assistance Mobile Pavilion (CAMP) is a national program designed to help people who have suffered loss or damage as a result of a natural disaster.
Severe Weather Insurance FAQs
After a disaster, Canadians can expect recovery support from a variety of sources including the Red Cross and Emergency Management Organizations (EMOs).
Past severe weather events
The cost of severe weather in Canada
Noteworthy severe weather events in 2022 include Hurricane Fiona, the Ontario and Quebec derecho, the Eastern Canada late-winter storm, the Western Canada summer storms and the Eastern Canada bomb cyclone. These events cost between $60 million and $1 billion each in insured damages.
Insured Damage for Severe Weather Events in 2022
| Date | Severe Weather Event | Total loss ($ billion) |
|---|---|---|
| February 17–19 | Eastern Canada late-winter storm | $140 million |
| April 22–25 | Manitoba and Northwestern Ontario flooding | $60 million |
| May 21 | Ontario and Quebec derecho | $1 billion |
| June 16–17 | Ontario and Quebec severe storms | $50 million |
| July–August | Western Canada summer storms | $300 million |
| September 23–24 | Hurricane Fiona | $800 million |
| December 22–26 | Eastern Canada bomb cyclone | $180 million |
| December 23–27 | BC winter storm and king tide | $80 million |
Source 1983–2007: IBC, PCS Canada, Swiss Re, Deloitte. 2008–2021: CatIQ.
Canada's Top 10 Highest Insured Loss Years on Record (loss and adjusted expenses in 2022 dollars)
| Rank | Year | Total loss ($ billion) | Notable severe weather event |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2016 | 5.96 | Fort McMurray, Alberta, fire |
| 2 | 2013 | 3.87 | Alberta floods; Greater Toronto Area (GTA) floods, December GTA Ice Storm |
| 3 | 2022 | 3.12 | Multiple events |
| 4 | 1998 | 2.83 | Quebec ice storm |
| 5 | 2021 | 2.48 | Calgary hailstorm; British Columbia floods |
| 6 | 2020 | 2.46 | Fort McMurray, Alberta, flood; Calgary hailstorm |
| 7 | 2018 | 2.40 | Multiple events: Ontario and Quebec rainstorms and windstorms |
| 8 | 2011 | 1.97 | Slave Lake, Alberta, fire and windstorm |
| 9 | 2012 | 1.65 | Calgary rainstorm |
| 10 | 2019 | 1.56 | Multiple events |
Sources 1983--2007: IBC, PCS Canada, Swiss Re, Deloitte. 2008--2021: CatIQ.
What we’re doing about the cost of severe weather
In today's world of extreme weather events, insured catastrophic losses in Canada now routinely exceed $2 billion annually, most of it due to water-related damage. In the decade before 2008, Canadian insurers averaged only $456 million a year in severe weather-related losses.
We continue to have in-depth discussions with the federal and provincial governments on ways to improve the resilience of communities and better manage the costs of flooding for high-risk residential properties in Canada.
In August 2022, Federal, provincial, territorial and governments and Indigenous organizations collaborated with insurers to finalize the "Task Force Report on Flood Insurance and Relocation”. The federal government is now examining options to create a national residential flood insurance program that will offer affordable insurance to all residents at high risk of overland flooding, including storm surge, through a public-private partnership. Most G7 countries already have such a program in place.
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Climate Proof Canada
We need to prepare our communities now from ever increasing severe weather events, like floods and wildfires. See what we’re doing to make climate change action work.
What we do
As the leading voice of the Canadian property and casualty (P&C) insurance industry and their customers, we proactively work to shape decisions on policy reforms and regulations and provide consumer education.