The devastating fires ravaging Los Angeles risk having repercussions on the home insurance premiums of Quebecers, due to the global interconnection of the insurance sector.
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“The insurance industry has been globally integrated for several hundred years. It’s not something that we learn today or that was formed recently,” explained insurance broker Louis Cyr Thursday to Mario Dumont in an interview on QUB radio at 99.5 FM Montreal .
The reinsurer system
The system is more complex than it seems, the expert explained. Take the example of Beneva, a well-known insurer in Quebec. Like all insurers, Beneva must itself obtain insurance from a global reinsurer to protect itself in the event of major catastrophes. “The first 2, 3, 4, 5 million is sure to be his, he has no right to call on anyone,” explained Mr. Cyr. Above a certain amount, the insurer can transfer the costs to international reinsurers.
This globalized situation is all the more worrying since Canada has just gone through a record year in terms of disasters.
-“Without California, 8.5 billion this year, it is the biggest year of catastrophic loss in Canada,” underlined Mr. Cyr. The Jasper fires and the floods in Alberta and Quebec particularly marked 2024.
This situation could foreshadow the future of other regions, warns Mr. Cyr.
“We must not think that we are sovereign [des États-Unis]. We must not think that the neighbor is not us. No, no, the neighbor is us,” underlined the expert.
*This text, generated with the help of artificial intelligence, was reviewed and validated by our team based on an interview carried out at QUB.
