CatIQ, the independent Toronto-based organisation providing industry-wide catastrophe insurance data, has disclosed its final industry loss estimate for the 2024 Jasper, Alberta wildfire, with total insured losses standing at CAD 1,304 million.
The figure, released two years after the devastating blaze swept through Jasper National Park between 22 July and 17 August 2024, is considered stable versus the one-year loss estimate of CAD 1,313 million.
The update report from CatIQ, a subsidiary of PERILS, provides a detailed breakdown of property and motor losses by FSA (high-resolution CRESTA Zones).
The Jasper wildfire remains, by far, the costliest Canadian fire event of the 2020s, with a total loss only slightly lower than the cumulative total of the decade’s eleven wildfire events to date.
Canada has recorded at least one fire-related catastrophe each year since 2023, including five events declared in 2025.
Laura Twidle, President and CEO of CatIQ, commented: “Though the loss footprint for the Jasper wildfire was relatively small, it is an important reminder that even a small number of claims can drive tremendous loss. Of the more than 220 events in the CatIQ catastrophe loss database, Jasper maintains the highest average claim value for both personal and commercial property.”
Alongside the final Jasper loss estimate, CatIQ released its second loss estimate for the Saskatchewan and Manitoba severe storm outbreak of 9 and 10 June 2026.
The six-week post-event estimate for insured losses for the Prairie storms has been revised to CAD 850 million, an increase over the initial estimate, with growth primarily appearing in motor lines.
Both estimates cover property (both commercial and residential) and vehicle (motor) claims.
Twidle continued: “Contrasting the Jasper fire, the severe weather outbreak saw large population centres directly impacted by storms, driving a very large number of claims. As it stands, this event now has the third highest number of claims of any in the CatIQ database.
“It has been a busy start to the catastrophe season, and we must remember that these numbers are tied to people who have some of their largest investments and assets impacted. There’s been a significant number of Canadians impacted by severe weather and wildfires this year alone, and up to the end of June, the number of catastrophe claims exceeded 100,000.”
