CatIQ Issues Annual Update of Insurance Industry Exposure Database for Canada, Increased Flood Exposures

CatIQ - Catastrophe Indices and Quantification. A PERILS Company.

Toronto (April 30, 2021) – Catastrophe Indices & Quantification Inc. (CatIQ), a subsidiary of Zurich-based PERILS AG, today released the annual update of its Canadian insurance Industry Exposure Database (IED). Developed with the support of the Canadian P&C industry, the IED now contains 2020 year-end estimates of Canadian industry property sums insured.  

As in previous years, the database makes available industry property sums insured, number of risks and prevailing original insurance conditions by: 

  • Canada Post Forward Sortation Area (FSA) 
  • Peril (windstorm, hail, fire, flood, sewer back-up, earthquake and volcanic eruption) 
  • Line of business (personal, commercial, and motor hull) 
  • Cover type (building, vehicle, contents, business interruption and additional living expense, where applicable) 

The Canadian insurance market added overland flood coverage in 2015 and the steady growth is reflected in the Canadian IED. Since the start of data collection in 2016, there has been a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 82% in the personal line number of risks. In total, the personal flood exposure has more than doubled during that period and now stands at CAD 5 trillion.  

Launched in June 2018, CatIQ’s IED is based on detailed exposure submissions from a majority of the Canadian insurance market. Consistent with PERILS’ globally recognized methodology, CatIQ’s IED is updated annually from the ground-up. Also, with the support of the participating insurers, CatIQ produces industry loss estimates at the FSA level as follows: 

  • The same perils, lines of business and cover types as listed above 
  • Any catastrophe that results in an industry loss greater than C$300 million 

This detailed loss dataset is now comprised of five major events, including the 2016 Fort McMurray Wildfire, the 2018 May Windstorm in Ontario and Quebec, the Ottawa and Gatineau tornadoes of September 2018, the 2020 Fort McMurray ice jam flooding and the June Calgary hailstorm.  

Commenting on the announcement, Laura Twidle, Managing Director of CatIQ, said: “Insurers, along with the wider industry, now have access to five years of exposure data which allows for the improved analysis of specific trends.” She added that “The history and level of detail in the Canadian IED and the CatIQ Loss platform will provide immense value to insurers, reinsurers, broker and modelers.”  

Luzi Hitz, CEO of PERILS, added: “Today’s release of the Canadian IED completes the 2021 update cycle of the PERILS exposure databases. We now provide IEDs for 21 important Cat markets around the world. Each year they are constructed ‘from-ground-up using sums insured information sourced from the covered markets. We are convinced that they are the best IEDs available in the market and together with our industry loss information form a deep data pool for Cat risk analytics, market benchmarking and industry-loss-based risk transfer.” 

CatIQ’s IED module is available on CatIQ’s platform along with the Canadian catastrophe loss database. Primary insurers participating in the IED program receive the IED module at no extra charge. Furthermore, CatIQ’s Canadian IED and granular loss information is made available on the PERILS platform. In addition to Canada, PERILS’ Industry Exposure and Loss Database covers Australia, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, and the United Kingdom. 

About PERILS AG 

PERILS is an independent Zurich-based organization providing industry-wide natural catastrophe exposure and event loss data. The PERILS Industry Exposure & Loss Database is available to all interested parties via annual subscription. PERILS industry loss estimates, provided via the PERILS Industry Loss Index Service, can be used as triggers in insurance risk transactions such as industry loss warranty contracts (ILW) or insurance-linked securities (ILS) and currently covers the following 17 countries: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, and the United Kingdom. The use of PERILS exposure and loss data other than in conjunction with a valid PERILS License and according to its terms, by a Licensee or an Authorized User as defined in the License, is illegal and expressly forbidden.

More information can be found at https://www.catiq.com and https://www.perils.org  

Contacts: 

Laura Twidle +1 416 368 1723 x1 [email protected]

Nigel Allen +44 7988 478824 [email protected]