Verisk report shows wildfire catastrophe losses rise nearly 2,000% in 2025
VRSK•Verisk’s analysis found U.S. wildfire catastrophe losses rose nearly 2,000% in 2025, while claims increased nearly 500% from 2024. Across 14 states, acres burned fell nearly 60% and wildfire counts rose less than 3%.
1. Wildfire losses climb
Verisk’s wildfire analysis found U.S. catastrophe losses rose nearly 2,000% in 2025, and claims increased nearly 500% from 2024. Across 14 analyzed states, acres burned fell nearly 60%, while wildfire counts rose less than 3%.
2. Insurance figures
Wildfire-exposed risks remain harder to place, price and manage despite more favorable conditions for some other catastrophe risks. U.S. property/casualty insurers’ first-half 2026 underwriting gain reached $31.7 billion, compared with $11.6 billion a year earlier, when Los Angeles wildfires weighed. California FAIR Plan exposure reached $768 billion in June 2026, up 250% from 2022.
