California wildfire insured losses top $1 billion

Burned out remains of vehicles and homes scorched by the Valley Fire line Jefferson St. in Middletown, California./ REUTERS

California wildfires caused more than $1 billion in insured damage last month, according to a report released Thursday by the Impact Forecasting team at Aon P.L.C.'s Aon Benfield Group.

According to “Global Catastrophe Recap: September 2015,” last month's Valley Fire that burned large portions of California northwest of San Francisco, resulted in estimated insured losses in excess of $925 million. The Butte Fire near Sacramento caused about $250 million insured losses.

“The severity of the September wildfires in California serves as a reminder of how costly the peril can be for the insurance industry,” said Adam Podlaha, head of Impact Forecasting in London, in a statement accompanying the report. “With insurers facing more than $ 1 billion in claims payouts for the Valley and Butte fires alone, it makes it the costliest year for the peril since 2007.