That's up from about $400 million each year between 2000 and 2009, around the time insurers began to see increases in property claims, he said in an interview. Data driving risk assessmentsA severe 20-minute hailstorm that pelted Calgary last June saw property insurers pay out more than $1 billion for about 100,000 claims, he noted. At close to $4 billion, the 2016 wildfire in Fort McMurray, Alta., is the costliest natural disaster on record for property insurers in Canada. It resulted in considerable losses for insurers relying on outdated risk modelling, Stewart said. Real estate agents have a role to play too, he said, pointing to U.S. brokerage Redfin, which recently announced it's making climate risk information available on its listings.

Source: CBC News August 15, 2021 21:33 UTC