Canada Flood Risk
While the frequency and intensity of flood events is generally expected to increase under climate change, the situation in Canada is quite complex. The need for relevant, good quality intelligence to quantify flood risk, understand potential losses and develop resilience is increasingly important.
As the global leaders in flood risk science, JBA flood risk data and models offer exceptional levels of flexibility and transparency to meet the changing demands. And our commitment to continual investment in our maps, models and data means we are at the forefront of flood risk science innovation.
JBA Canada Flood Map - National coverage map providing comprehensive view of flood
JBA’s Canada Flood Map is the most widely used map in the Canadian re/insurance market, providing comprehensive coverage for fluvial, pluvial and storm surge flooding with defended and undefended views. Developed using JBA’s national hydrological study in collaboration with the University of Waterloo - a first of its kind in the country - this was a significant step towards defining national standards for flood mapping. The peer-reviewed mapping methodologies are based on observed river gauge, rainfall and snowmelt data to reflect unique local factors influencing flood, enabling the best estimation of flood in each region and a realistic view of the risk. The maps are updated every two years to reflect the latest science and data and have just gone through the latest round of updates for January 2025. Fluvial, pluvial and storm surge flood each behave in different ways and have different impacts on risk. These three flood types are explicitly modelled, providing an opportunity to consider each type of flooding separately in the risk assessment process and identify which flood type may be the driver of loss in each location. Our Canada Flood Map is also the first to provide extensive storm surge coverage in order to capture the significant impact of this flood type, as seen in past events like the 1976 Groundhog Day winter storm.
Canada Pricing Data - Informed risk selection and pricing for underwriting
Developed using JBA’s 30m Canada Flood Map, JBAs Canada pricing data provides an annual cost of flooding to achieve an indicative property-level flood assessment, aiding risk selection and pricing decisions. Pricing data is provided as annual damage ratios by flood type, coverage and building construction.
Canada Flood Model, current day and future scenarios - Probabilistic quantification of loss
The Canada Flood Model is underpinned by JBA’s high resolution hazard data, utilised by insurers and risk managers for risk selection, pricing and accumulation management. It enables better differentiation between adjacent risks for a more accurate risk assessment while reducing model uncertainty and provides a consistent view of risk across the risk transfer chain from location-level underwriting and risk assessment to portfolio pricing and capital modelling.
The model is Oasis-enabled and utilises JBA technology that enables users to customise a model by introducing business-relevant vulnerabilities or other data they choose.
Driven by continuous innovation, the model is routinely updated to make use of the latest science and data. The latest updates, run with JBA defaults, will provide JBA’s best estimate of flood risk in Canada.
Future flood risk management under climate change
The Canada Flood Model includes climate change variants which provide an indication of potential future changes in flood risk and losses. This enables users to understand potential impacts of climate change on flood risk for property and portfolio planning, capital management, assessment against regulatory requirements and more. We also offer bespoke development for specific climate scenarios and adjustments to meet ESG internal requirements or regulatory requirements such as CSRD, TCFD and solvency.
Consultancy
We provide more than just data. Our flexible approach to flood modelling enables us to offer bespoke solutions for your individual flood risk needs.