The hailstorm left golf ball-sized dents in hundreds of vehicles located near the Calgary International Airport on Aug. 5, 2024. Eli J. Ridder/CHAT News

By Eli J. Ridder

ECONOMY

Insurance costs for historic Calgary hailstorm climb to over $3B

Feb 11, 2025 | 12:05 PM

The insurance costs for a record-breaking hailstorm that ravaged vehicles, homes and infrastructure in Calgary last summer is now estimated at $3.25 billion, a new report says.

That’s as auto claims wrap up and work on damaged homes is expected to continue into the summer.

The storm has been classified as the second-costliest disaster in Canadian history for insured losses and has resulted in more than 130,000 claims, according to Catastrophe Indices and Quantification, Inc.

Despite the large volume of claims from the hailstorm, the Insurance Bureau of Canada said Tuesday that insurers have “made good progress” on helping affected customers.

The majority of auto insurance claims — which represent more than half of all claims from the hailstorm — have been completed, IBC said.

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Total insured damage to vehicles is estimated to be $1 billion.

The hail damage was so extensive that roughly half of all vehicles damaged were total losses, meaning that the value of the vehicle was written off and customers opted for cash payouts in lieu of repairs.

Insurers brought in adjusters from across Alberta to help expedite vehicle assessments and repairs, according to a news release.

It wasn’t just cars that were harmed by the hail.

Nearly 60,000 homes in the Calgary area were also impacted.

The availability of building supplies and repair contractor services in Calgary has been strained by the scale of the damage, the bureau reported.

The vast majority of repairs are expected to be complete this spring and summer.

A new report from global risk-managing firm Aon pointed out the growing risk of hail events in Calgary’s north end where the Aug. 5, 2024, hailstorm occurred.

An analysis of the hailstorm footprint shows that if this hailstorm had occurred 40 years ago, it would have affected mostly agricultural land.

In June 2020, the same area of north Calgary was hit by a hailstorm that resulted in $1.2 billion in insured losses.