France wildfires to cost between 10 and 15 billion EUR in damages

According to the rating agency Morningstar DBRS, damages caused by the wildfires in France are estimated at between 10 billion and 15 billion EUR (11.5 to 17.3 billion USD). If confirmed, these fires would represent the costliest wildfire event ever recorded in the country.

Fitch Ratings, meanwhile, expects the financial impact on insurers to remain limited in 2026, provided the fires do not spread to major residential, commercial, or industrial areas.

It is worth noting that wildfire-related damage is not covered under France's natural disaster compensation scheme (Cat-Nat).

Globally, Europe accounted for 5% of wildfire losses between 2016 and 2025, representing 8.65 billion EUR (9.96 billion USD). The limited historical data on wildfires in Europe makes risk modeling more challenging, complicating the underwriting process for insurers.