Downturn in Q3 Natural Disaster Activity as Insured Losses Reach $114 billion – Aon Catastrophe Report

Aon plc (NYSE: AON), a leading global professional services firm, launched its Global Catastrophe Recap – Third Quarter (Q3) of 2025 report, which aggregates and analyzes global natural catastrophe data during the first nine months of the year.

The report reveals that while the third quarter did not produce major global disasters in terms of insured or economic losses, the human toll remained significant. Catastrophe-related losses from July through September were below average across all regions, but the period still saw devastating events, including deadly earthquakes and heatwaves. Total economic losses in the first nine months have reached at least $203B, with insured losses at a minimum of $114B. The report identifies 36 events that each caused over $1 billion in economic losses, 22 of which also resulted in over $1 billion in insured losses.

These dynamics resulted in a protection gap of 44 percent – the lowest ever recorded for this period. This was largely driven by the high share of insured losses in the U.S. (88 percent), where insurance coverage is relatively high compared to other regions.

Natural disasters through the third quarter are estimated to have caused around 18,000 fatalities, primarily from earthquakes and heatwaves, with the deadliest individual event being the earthquake in Afghanistan on August 31. Despite these tragedies, the global death toll from natural disasters was 66 percent below the 21st-century average.

Aon data shows that severe convective storms (SCS) were the costliest peril during the nine months under review, causing $57B of global insured losses – the third highest SCS loss on record for the period. The Palisades Fire was the costliest single event, resulting in $32B in economic losses and $23B in insured losses, and contributing to total wildfire economic losses of more than $60B and insured losses of more than $40B.

Michal Lorinc, head of Catastrophe Insight at Aon, said: “The record-low protection gap observed in the first nine months of 2025 highlights the growing role of insurance in helping communities recover from natural disasters. While this progress has been driven largely by high insurance penetration in the U.S., it underscores the opportunity to expand similar levels of protection globally. Achieving this requires continued investment in region- and peril-specific tools, collaboration with a broad range of capital providers, and partnerships with governments and other stakeholders to ensure that risk is effectively transferred and managed wherever it exists.”

According to Aon data, global reinsurance capital reached a new record of approximately $735B at June 30, 2025. Within this total, alternative capital reached a record $121B, with outstanding catastrophe bond volume rising to $54B – an almost 20 percent increase year-over-year.

For Q3 alone, global economic losses reached at least $34B (76 percent below the 21st-century average), with global insured losses of $12B (72 percent below the 21st-century average, and the lowest since 2006). This resulted in a Q3 insurance protection gap of 66 percent, compared to a 21st-century average of 71 percent. It is important to note that damage assessments continue for many events, and the final toll will likely be higher.

To read the full Global Catastrophe Recap – Q3 of 2025 report, please visit: https://www.aon.com/getmedia/ea715f4f-56a0-437a-a103-09659e788a97/Global-Catastrophe-Recap-Q3.pdf

For more information about Aon’s Reinsurance Solutions, please visit:  https://www.aon.com/home/solutions/reinsurance.html

Notes 

All figures in USD unless otherwise stated.

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