Natural disasters: "2025 joins a growing list of years with insured losses exceeding $100Bn" (Munich Re)

"Natural disasters caused significant losses worldwide in 2025, which joining a growing list of years with insured losses exceeding the $100 Bn mark. All in all, damage amounting to some $224Bn was incurred, of which insurers covered around $108Bn", said the reinsurance company Munich Re, on 13/01/2026.

Despite the losses being lower year on year ($147 Bn had been insured in 2024, with losses totalling $356 Bn), the big picture is "alarming with regard to floods, severe convective storms and wildfires in 2025".

"Scientists largely agree that such natural disasters are becoming more severe and more frequent in many parts of the world", stressed Munich Re.

In addition, the wildfires in the Los Angeles area in January "constituted by far the costliest natural disaster of the year. Overall losses totalled around $53 Bn, including insured losses of roughly $40 Bn. It is the most expensive wildfire disaster to date".

The United States is "number one in loss statistics", even though "no hurricane struck the US mainland for the first time in ten years". According to Munich Re, "Europe got off…