The Insurance Bureau of Canada has activated its Virtual Community Assistance Mobile Pavilion (V-CAMP) helpline for Manitobans affected by severe weather and flooding across the southern and western parts of the province, providing one-to-one support and guidance through the claims and recovery process.
Storms on June 6 and 7 sparked multiple tornado warnings and brought more than 125 millimetres of rain to the Minitonas area in a single day, triggering a local state of emergency in the Rural Municipality of Minitonas-Bowsman.
The town of Swan River faced significant flooding, with sandbags deployed to protect homes and businesses as water levels remained dangerously high. Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew announced the activation of a provincewide disaster financial assistance program, stating that where insurance may not meet the needs of Manitobans, government resources will be available to support cleanup and recovery.
"The devastation from this major weather event in southern and western Manitoba is deeply concerning. As recovery begins, those with damage can contact their insurer when ready to start a claim," said Aaron Sutherland, IBC's vice-president, Pacific and Western.
IBC is reminding affected residents of the key distinctions in coverage that commonly arise after flooding events. Sewer backup coverage is optional and must be specifically purchased. Overland flood damage is also optional coverage that is widely available in Manitoba but often subject to limits and may be unavailable in known floodplains or high-risk areas.
Wind damage to homes is typically covered under standard home insurance, including damage from flying debris, falling branches, and water entering through storm-created openings. Roof leaks caused by storm damage are generally covered, though the roof itself is not covered if deterioration results from wear and tear. Additional living expenses may be available to homeowners unable to return home due to insured damage. Coastal and storm surge damage is generally excluded from both home and business policies.
For commercial policyholders, business interruption coverage is typically triggered by direct physical damage to the insured premises or to a neighboring property that forces a closure. Owners of seasonal or secondary residences should inspect properties when safe and report damage promptly - coverage limits may differ from those on a primary home policy.
The Manitoba floods arrive as Canada's flood insurance gap remains a central and unresolved challenge for the industry.
Roughly 10 million of Canada's 15 million homes have some form of overland flood insurance, leaving approximately one-third of properties without protection despite increasing flood risk, according to federal analysis referenced in the OECD's 2025 economic survey of Canada. According to the IBC, 10% of Canadian households are at high risk of flooding but lack access to flood insurance altogether.
Allstate Insurance Company of Canada reported that home claims caused by water from external sources jumped 94% in 2025 compared with 2024, and warned that many households remain unprepared for escalating water risk. Brokers in some regions have reported tighter underwriting, with carriers reducing limits or withdrawing overland flood and groundwater coverage after multiple losses, leaving some river-adjacent homeowners reliant on limited sewer-backup cover or on government disaster assistance.
The federal government has been working toward a National Flood Insurance Program designed to extend coverage to approximately 1.5 million households at highest risk. The Liberal Party pledged $450 million over five years for the program during the April 2025 election campaign, targeting an April 2026 launch, but Public Safety Canada would not confirm that timeline.
A federal minister recently acknowledged that the coverage gap is now concentrated in a relatively small number of extremely high-risk properties, often in known flood-prone areas, and that any program would need to be carefully designed to fill that specific gap without crowding out the functioning private market.
Insured damage from severe weather across Canada exceeded $2.4 billion in 2025, making it the tenth costliest year on record according to CatIQ, with events including wildfires in Manitoba and Saskatchewan, severe hailstorms across the Prairies, and December floods in British Columbia.
Between 2016 and 2025, Canada's annual insured losses from catastrophic weather and wildfires totalled $37 billion, nearly triple the $14 billion recorded in the preceding decade, with the average number of claims almost doubling over the same period.
"Two decades ago, insured losses seldom surpassed $500 million in a year. Today, annual costs exceeding $1 billion have become the norm," said Celyeste Power (pictured), president and CEO of IBC. "This shift demands that we fundamentally rethink how we build, plan and restore communities across our country."
