Rebuilding, recovery after disasters needs to be better managed: insurance bureau

Workers continue to assess, repair and rebuild as some residents return to Jasper, Alberta on Monday August 19, 2024. Photo by AMBER BRACKEN /THE CANADIAN PRESS

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TORONTO — The Insurance Bureau of Canada is calling for national discussions about how to better manage rebuilding after disasters as their cost and frequency grow.

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The bureau is asking the federal government to lead talks with provinces on disaster recovery as efforts to rebuild Jasper, Alta., encounter delays a year after a wildfire destroyed about a third of the town’s buildings.

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The calls come as July 22 marks one year of the Jasper wildfire, which caused an estimated $1.2 billion in insured damage. It was just one of several disasters last year that caused about $8.5 billion in combined insured damage to make it by far the costliest year on record.

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Costs have climbed as climate change has helped make extreme weather events more frequent and damaging, while the cost of building materials and other factors have also contributed to the increase.

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The higher costs of rebuilding also comes as it’s taking longer to get repairs going.

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Almost a year after the Jasper wildfire, IBC says officials have only issued rebuilding permits for 56 of the 358 buildings that burned down.

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The rebuild is going much slower than it did after the 2016 Fort McMurray wildfire, which saw much of the reconstruction start within the first year, despite it being the most costly wildfire event in Canadian history with some 2,400 structures destroyed.

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“Delays that prolong the rebuilding process, like we are seeing in Jasper, are occurring more frequently in Canada after large catastrophic events,” said Craig Stewart, vice-president of climate change and federal issues at IBC, in a release issued ahead of the one-year anniversary.

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As delays in Jasper continue, the bureau is warning that some residents could run out of additional living expenses coverage and many businesses could use up their business interruption coverage.

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Part of the issue on delays is the added regulation from the town being in a national park and the extra remediation rules, but Stewart said a lack of co-ordinated and standardized response is also an issue.

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“Canada needs a federal co-ordinating agency to guide emergency preparedness and recovery,” he said.

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“Every other G7 country has an agency operating in this capacity — it’s time for Canada to follow suit and take on a proactive approach to emergency management.”

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The insurance association also called for government to better support community wildfire protection initiatives such as firebreaks and limits to new buildings in unprotected high-risk areas.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 21, 2025.

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