European Insurers Warn €3.1 Billion Wildfire Losses Expose Protection Gap
Updated
Updated · CNBC · Aug 7
European Insurers Warn €3.1 Billion Wildfire Losses Expose Protection Gap
3 articles · Updated · CNBC · Aug 7
Summary
€3.1 billion in wildfire and heatwave damage had hit five fire-exposed eurozone countries by end-July, already above the EU’s average annual 2.5 billion-euro impact estimate.
Insurers said much of that growing loss burden is not covered, as Europe remains less insured against natural catastrophes than the U.S. even while heatwaves, droughts and wildfires intensify.
300,000 acres have burned in a France-Spain wildfire since July, while Greece faced new outbreaks driven by 100 kph winds, underscoring how extreme weather is becoming a recurring summer risk.
$56.3 billion in wildfire claims were paid globally in the 2010s—six times the 2000s level—and Swiss Re said the 2025 Los Angeles fires alone caused $40 billion in insured losses.
Zurich, Swiss Re and Munich Re said prevention, risk assessment and public-sector intervention are now critical, though Zurich and Munich Re added their own direct exposure to European fires is limited.