BCBusiness

13 B C B U S I N E S S . C A J U N E 2 0 2 5 To p : A r p r i n c e / S h u t t e r s t o c k ; G o F i g u r e : B C F e r r i e s , C h u s n i /A d o b e S t o c k , D i m e n s i d e s i g n /A d o b e S t o c k , A b a y/A d o b e S t o c k , I c o n s - S t u d i o /A d o b e S t o c k ; G o F i g u r e b a c k g r o u n d : P a c h a M Ve c t o r/A d o b e S t o c k 13 North Americans were in the thick of winter when, in January, large swaths of the priciest real estate in Los Angeles began to burn. Like millions around the globe, Aaron Sutherland watched the gut-wrenching TV footage as the fire engulfed thousands of homes, reducing entire com- munities to ash. As the Insurance Bureau of Canada's vice-president for its Western & Pacific region, Sutherland had travelled to Jasper, Alberta, after last year's devastating blaze, and to Kelowna after fires swept through the area in 2023. "[L.A.] was eerily reminis- cent of what we've seen in this province, and all of the emo- tions that come with that," says Sutherland. Insurers are there to piece things back together, he adds, "but there's a human toll that cannot be fixed, and that's absolutely devastating." B U S I N E S S C L I M AT E PREMIUM PRICE How climate change could reshape insurance in B.C. by Jennifer Van Evra Jennifer Van Evra is an award-winning Vancouver journalist, broadcaster and UBC writing instructor. It's also becoming more familiar, and more costly. Climate change is nothing new, says Sutherland, but the scope and scale of its impact is growing dramatically, as are insurance payouts, and that's creating fresh challenges for B.C.'s insurance industry. According to the Insur- ance Bureau of Canada (IBC), because of severe weather— including those wildfires in Jasper, along with Toronto area floods, a Calgary hailstorm, the aftermath of Hurricane Debby and severe storms and deep freezes in B.C.—2024 shattered Canadian records for insured damage related to severe weather, with the final CHANGING NATURE Flames engulf a struc- ture as the Palisades Fire rages during a powerful windstorm on Los Angeles' west- side, showcasing nature's ferocity THE B.C. GOVERNMENT CONTRACTS OUT 8 SMALLER COASTAL FERRY ROUTES TO PRIVATE OPERATORS. S o u r c e s : B C F e r r y C o r p . , G o v e r n m e n t o f B .C . , H ull o F e r r i e s 19.9% of sailings were overloaded, meaning at least some passengers had to wait for a subsequent sailing. Almost half—48.4%—of the sailings on major routes between the Lower Mainland, Vancouver Island and the Sunshine Coast were overloaded. 79.3% OF SAILINGS DEPARTED ON TIME (WITHIN 10 MINUTES OF SCHEDULED DEPARTURE). IN ITS FIRST YEAR OF OPERATIONS ENDING AUGUST 2024, RIVAL HULLO FERRIES CARRIED MORE THAN 400,000 FOOT PASSENGERS BETWEEN VANCOUVER AND NANAIMO ON 3,200 SAILINGS. ITS TWO CATAMARANS TRAVEL AT SPEEDS OF UP TO 38 KNOTS OR 70.4 KPH. The Ministry of Transportation operates 13 inland ferries around B.C. The Kootenay Lake ferry, which travels 8 kilometres between Balfour and Kootenay Bay, is the world's longest free car ferry.

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