The severe storm and midwinter defrost that hit Eastern Canada in February has left a massive insurance bill, with hundreds of millions in insured damages.
The Insurance Bureau of Canada says that, within the first two months of 2025, weather caused an estimated $260 million in insured damage across Ontario, Quebec and Atlantic Canada.
The bureau also notes that this number does not include the damage from the late-March Ontario ice storm, with those estimates expected to be released in the coming weeks.
“With many Ontarians still grappling with the lingering impacts of the recent ice storm, residents have once again experienced a harsh winter with severe storms and floods that damaged or destroyed homes, vehicles and businesses,” said Amanda Dean, vice-president of the bureau for Ontario and the Atlantic region.
“While parts of Quebec and Atlantic Canada were impacted by these events, the vast majority of damage took place in Ontario, with heavy snowfall, strong wind gusts, ice and rain causing significant structural damage. Our member insurers have been on the ground since day one and continue to work with policyholders whose property was damaged by these events.”
The bureau warns that the frequency and severity of flooding and severe storms in Ontario and across Canada continue to increase yearly.
In 2025, home insurance rates have risen 5.28 per cent, well above the rate of inflation, according to a report published by My Choice Financial, a Canadian insurance aggregator and comparison website.
While there are several factors, insurance experts say climate change is a major driving force.
Earlier this month, the Insurance Bureau of Canada told Global News that insured losses are at record highs in Canada.
The Insurance Bureau of Canada reported record-breaking losses of $8.5 billion paid out in 2024, triple that seen in 2023 and 12 times the annual average between 2001 and 2010.
“Flooding and severe winter storms can be costly, stressful and difficult for people who have been affected,” Dean said.
The major storms leading to the $260 million include more than $90 million in insured damage from Feb. 15 to 19, when a severe winter storm tracking south of the Great Lakes and into Atlantic Canada resulted in heavy snowfall, strong wind gusts, ice and rain from southern Ontario to Newfoundland.
Experts say the same region was impacted by a snowstorm just a few days prior, leading to heavy accumulation with little time to mitigate the impacts of the storms.
The bureau reports that the weather has led to many reports of structural collapses in Ontario and Quebec, along with other structural damage and power outages.
During this time, numerous municipalities in southern Ontario also declared significant weather events and more than 600 collisions were reported on Ontario’s roads.
Strong winds also caused power outages in Atlantic Canada, with approximately 6,000 customers without power on Feb. 17, most in Nova Scotia.
More than $160 million in losses came a week later, from Feb. 24 to 26, when temperatures quickly climbed well above freezing for the first time in weeks.
The bureau reports that the rapid temperature change, coupled with some rainfall, caused the snowpack in Ontario and Quebec to melt quickly, causing flooding in low-lying areas and basements, leading to the majority of claims.
Reports of damage also included roofs collapsing due to snow load, including a six-storey parking garage in Ottawa that partially collapsed, trapping approximately 50 vehicles, the bureau reports.
“What we’re seeing is the level of risk across the country is increasing, whether that’s the threat of hurricanes in Atlantic Canada, hailstorms in Alberta, or wildfire across the country. The costliest and most severe event we experience in Canada is flooding,” Jason Clark, the national director of climate change and federal issues at the Insurance Bureau of Canada, said earlier this month.