Forest Fire Insurance and Canadian Homes

How seasonal forest fires are impacting Canadians 

If 2023 has proven one thing, it’s that the effects of seasonal forest fires have become nearly impossible to ignore, no matter where in Canada you live. In fact, in terms of area burned, 2023 was the worst year on record for forest fires in this country. So much so that even our neighbours to the south were impacted by what’s happening up here, particularly the states of Maryland and New York.

The fires started in March 2023, affecting all 13 provinces, especially Ontario, Quebec, Alberta, British Columbia, Nova Scotia and the Northwest Territories (though Western Canada tends to take the brunt of it year after year). The total area burned in 2023 was over 18.5 million hectares – two and a half times the previous record, set in 1995.

Despite forest fires occurring relatively regularly in Canada, especially between April and September, this amount of land burned is far from normal. According to the Canadian Red Cross, forest fires burn 2.5 million hectares a year, which is nearly half the size of Nova Scotia. In 2023, forest fires burned seven times that amount, which is basically three and a half Nova Scotias. That’s an unprecedented amount of land.

Depending on how close you are to those forest fires, you might want to keep track of them. The Canadian Wildland Fire Information System updates its map daily, so they are worth checking out. During the fire season, you can also get up-to-date wildfire reports and interactive maps from the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre (CIFFC).

The cause of forest fires in Canada

Government of British Columbia's main website attributes 60% of forest fires to lightning and 40% to human activity, such as unattended campfires, discarded cigarettes, burning of debris and arson. That said, these percentages likely fluctuate across the provinces, so the actual numbers will vary, so it might be safer to assume that the split is more half and half.

Even so, given the climate in Canada has grown hotter and drier because of climate change – a largely human-driven phenomenon – it’s hard not to place most of the blame on human activity. In fact, a study by World Weather Attribution has found that climate change has more than doubled the likelihood of extreme fire weather conditions in Eastern Canada.

These hot, dry, and windy conditions can spread and sustain fires over long distances, meaning that even a single flame – sparked by humans or otherwise – can pose a threat to large swathes of land.

According to CIFFC’s reports, 2023 didn’t see significantly more fires started than the years prior – despite more land being burned. In fact, the report shows that more fires were started during the 1980s than in the decades after, strongly suggesting that climate change is the driving force behind the damage wildfires cause today.

Why forest fires are a concern

Many more Canadians were impacted by forest fire smoke in 2023 than in the years prior. Suddenly, even previously untouched cities like Toronto were affected. Almost 200,000 Canadians were placed under an evacuation order during that intense forest fire season. As a result, seasonal forest fires ceased to be some distant, nebulous concept, and became an everyday reality.

So far, wildfire season projections for 2024 aren’t looking much better – but whether it will be another record-breaking year remains to be seen.

Forest fires start small but spread quickly. Traveling across long distances, they can easily ignite trees, brush, homes and buildings. Burning debris can be carried by wind across almost two kilometres ahead of a wildfire, further increasing the risk of more objects getting ignited.

In addition to destroying Canada’s natural environment, forest fires produce enormous amounts of smoke, which reduces air quality and harms our health. The Government of Canada lists asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) exacerbation, bronchitis, pneumonia and cardiovascular outcomes as some of the effects of wildfire smoke.

This means that if your home sits in the area impacted by forest fires, you and your property are at risk. You, your family and the rest of your community may be forced to evacuate – often in a hurry. And if your home gets damaged or lost due to a fire, you will then also have to deal with either repairing or rebuilding it.

Home insurance (or fire insurance, to be specific) is likely to play a big role in the recovery process. However, given the rise in wildfire frequency and damage, your premiums may see a significant increase as well. In the US, for instance, insurance companies are losing so much money due to wildfires and other climate-related disasters, they are forced to cancel their coverages and move out of certain states.

While Canadian home insurers aren’t yet abandoning their customers in the same manner, they have been increasing their rates to account for their losses. This isn’t surprising, as according to the Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC), severe weather in 2023 cost the country $3.1 billion in insured damage.

Unfortunately, those costs are now being passed down to you and other homeowners, and there’s little you can do to stop this. Even so, there are steps you can take to reduce the impact of forest fires on both your safety and wallet. Read on to learn more about forest fire insurance and how it can protect your home.