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Western wildfire insured losses pegged at $4 billion to $8 billion

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Risk Management Services Inc. estimates insured losses from wildfire for the Western U.S. will be between $4 billion and $8 billion, the Newark, California-based catastrophe modeler said in a statement Wednesday.

The estimates are for damages as of Sept. 20, RMS said, adding “further escalation in losses are likely as many fires are still ongoing in California, Oregon and Washington.”

Major wildfires have caused an estimated $3 billion to $5 billion in damage in the Northern California region and $1 billion to $3 billion in the Oregon and Washington region, RMS said.

The estimates include losses from property damage, including evacuation and smoke damage; business interruption across residential, commercial and industrial lines; and additional living expenses, RMS said.

Smoke and evacuation are significant contributors to losses, accounting for about 20% of losses in the Northern California fires and about 35% in the Oregon and Washington fires, RMS said.

Loss estimates are produced using the RMS U.S. Wildfire HD Model supported by damage surveys for California fires, published damage reports for Oregon and Washington fires, and the RMS U.S. Wildfire Industry Exposure Database, the statement said.

Smoke and evacuation are significant contributors to losses, accounting for about 20% of losses in the Northern California fires and about 35% in the Oregon and Washington fires, RMS said.

Loss estimates are produced using the RMS U.S. Wildfire HD Model supported by damage surveys for California fires, published damage reports for Oregon and Washington fires, and the RMS U.S. Wildfire Industry Exposure Database, the statement said.