Swiss Re warns insured nat cat losses may reach $150bn in 2025
Global insured losses from natural catastrophes could reach $150bn in 2025, Swiss Re has warned.
With natural catastrophe activity typically higher in the second half of the year, total insured losses for 2025 could even exceed $150 billion.
“With 60% of annual natural catastrophe insured losses historically occurring in the second half of the year, the period ahead remains fraught with uncertainty,” wrote Swiss Re analysts.
Nat cat insured losses reached $80 billion in the first half of 2025, almost double the 10-year average, according to preliminary estimates from the Swiss Re Institute.
Swiss Re’s $80 billion figure for H1 2025 matches last month’s estimate from Munich Re.
The Los Angeles wildfires in January accounted for $40 billion of the first-half total, while insured losses from severe thunderstorms, known as severe convective storms (SCS) amounted to H1 insured losses of $31 billion.
Jérôme Haegeli, Swiss Re’s group chief economist, said: “The strongest lever to increase the resilience and safety of communities is to double down on mitigation and adaptation. It’s here that everyone can help reduce losses before they occur. While mitigation and adaptation measures come at a price, our research shows that, for example, flood protection measures such as dykes, dams and flood gates are up to ten times more cost-effective than rebuilding.”
With the US season for SCS past its peak, the focus for the second half of the year shifts to the North Atlantic hurricane season that typically peaks in early September. Forecasts indicate near- to above-average activity, with three to five major hurricanes — above the long-term average of three.
Meanwhile, the magnitude 7.7 earthquake which hit Myanmar in March caused estimated insured losses of $1.5 billion in Thailand alone, in addition to the wider human tragedy, which resulted in a high number of fatalities. Shockwaves were felt as far away as Thailand, India and China.
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