Article content

Water damage has surpassed fire as the leading cause of home insurance payouts, according to the Insurance Bureau of Canada, which is calling for a national flood mitigation strategy to manage the rising danger.

“Water is the new fire,” declared Pete Karageorgos, director of consumer and industry relations with the Insurance Bureau of Canada.

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or 'Water is the new fire': National strategy needed for flooding, says insurance expert Back to video

“Insurers are paying out more with regards to water damage claims than fire damage — even though home insurance really started out as a fire protection policy.”

Since 2009, Canadian insurers have been paying out an average of $400 million a year for severe weather events, most of which involve flooding. During the previous 25 years, weather events cost the industry an average of $100 million a year, according to insurance bureau data.

“It has gone up four-fold, and there’s no reason to believe it will go down,” Karageorgos said.