Its official – the Alberta June floods are the costliest natural disaster in Canadian history, exceeding $1.7 billion in estimated damages – and counting.
“It’s a staggering number that we expect will go even higher,” said Bill Adams, Insurance Bureau of Canada Vice-President, Western and Pacific. “While the monetary cost of the floods is huge, the emotional toll on Albertans is incalculable. Insurers and IBC are committed to helping Albertans through the claims process as they clean up and rebuild their lives and communities.”
The latest PCS-Canada estimate of the insured property damage caused by last June’s southern Alberta floods now exceeds $1.7 billion, a number that places the June flooding as the costliest in Canadian history, according to the IBC.
The flooding that hit southern Alberta and Toronto - and the subsequent debate on how the insurance industry needs to address the lack of a cohesive overland flood policy - is featured in the October issue of Insurance Business magazine.
The flooding was the result of torrential rainfall between June 20 and 24, killing four people and forcing 100,000 residents from their homes. The provincial government declared a state of emergency for Southern Alberta.
Immediately after the flooding, some 5,000 insurance professionals deployed to focus on helping with the claims process. IBC provided residents with information about assessing damage, filing claims and resolving disputes; it also coordinated with governments at the municipal, provincial and federal levels flood response and recovery. IBC and its members continue to advance claim requests as quickly as possible to ensure that policyholders can return to normal life. (continued.)
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The preliminary estimate of insured losses was calculated by Property Claim Services Canada (PCS-Canada), a service that tracks these losses arising from catastrophic events in Canada. PCS-Canada also reports that well in excess of 25,000 claims have been filed in the wake of the floods.
PCS-Canada is expected to update both numbers in 30 days.
