LA blaze damage likely to be largest wildfire insured loss in US history

(Reuters) - The Los Angeles wildfires, which have reduced entire neighborhoods to smoldering ruins and left an apocalyptic landscape, could become the costliest wildfires in U.S. history in terms of insured losses if analysts' estimates of up to $20 billion materialize.

Dangerously high winds were expected to resume on Monday in Los Angeles, potentially hampering efforts to extinguish two stubborn wildfires that have claimed the lives of at least two dozen people.

The Los Angeles wildfire loss estimates are critical as they underscore the escalating financial risks posed by climate-related disasters, highlighting potential implications for the insurance industry and the broader economic resilience.

AccuWeather forecasts total economic losses from the disaster to range between $135 billion and $150 billion, signaling a challenging recovery and likely surging homeowners' insurance costs.

Here is an overview of the top 10 costliest wildfires ever to hit the U.S.:

Rank Name Year State Adjusted

insured losses

in 2024 dollars

1 Los Angeles 2025 California $20 billion

wildfires based on

preliminary

estimates

2 Camp Fire 2018 California $12.76 billion

3 October Fire 2017 California $11.34 billion

Siege

4 Woolsey Fire 2018 California $5.36 billion

5 Oakland 1991 California $3.98 billion

firestorm

6 August Complex 2020 California $3.64 billion

7 Fire Siege 2020 California $3.09 billion

8 Southern 2017 California $2.94 billion

California

wildfires

9 Dixie Fire 2021 California $2.88 billion

10 Glass Fire 2020 California $2.78 billion

Biggest losses globally from natural disasters:

Year Affected Event Insured Economic

country Losses losses

2005 U.S. Hurricane Katrina $105 $225 billion

billion

2022 U.S. Hurricane Ian $64 $124 billion

billion

2011 Japan Tohoku earthquake $49 $293 billion

billion

2017 U.S. Hurricane Irma $45 $77 billion

billion

2012 U.S. Hurricane Sandy $39 $96 billion

billion

2017 U.S. Hurricane Harvey $39 $115 billion

billion

2017 U.S. Hurricane Maria $38 $99 billion

billion

2021 U.S. Hurricane Ida $36 $85 billion

billion

1992 U.S. Hurricane Andrew $35 $59 billion

billion

1994 U.S. Northridge $32 $93 billion

earthquake billion

** Sources: The Swiss Re Institute, Reuters reports, National Centers for Environmental Information, media reports, RBC Capital Markets

** Note: Loss data has been adjusted for inflation

(Reporting by Manya Saini and Noor Zainab Hussain in Bengaluru)