#300 10709 Jasper Avenue NW
Edmonton, Alberta T5J 3N3
A Note on the Jasper Wildfires

In 2024 we were faced with an event of profound impact and unprecedented scale for Peace Hills Insurance: the wildfire that swept through Jasper National Park. This catastrophe marked the largest loss in our company’s history, testing the resilience of our organization, our employees, the affected policyholders, our local broker, and the entire Jasper community.
With over 32,000 hectares burned, displacing 4,500 residents, and damaging or destroying 358 structures, the full impact of the fire is yet to be completely realized. For Peace Hills, the financial losses are immense, with a total of 491 claim files incurring $190M. The beautiful location of Jasper being nestled in the Alberta Rocky Mountains presents unique challenges in responding to an event of this magnitude. Ensuring that debris removal is conducted with a focus on protecting the environment while preserving the rustic charm of the townsite has meant a slower start to reconstruction. This has the potential to keep claims open longer and at risk of increasing in severity due to prolonged additional living expenses (ALE) and inflation on building costs. Yet, behind this picture lies a story of endurance and the unyielding spirit of recovery, which underscores why we do what we do here at Peace Hills.
For our staff, this wildfire was deeply personal. As an Alberta-based business, our company and team members have many cherished memories in Jasper. However, we are no strangers to the lasting impacts of an event of this scale and what is required in the face of it. We are immensely proud of the extraordinary compassion and commitment demonstrated by our team, going above and beyond to support our insureds during their time of greatest need.
Our claims team was immediately available by phone to help guide our insureds through the claims process. Once claim files were open, we expedited the issuance of advance ALE payments, ensuring our customers had access to funds for any necessities they may have had to leave behind. We stayed in close communication with the Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) so that we could mobilize and get our staff on site as soon as possible; several members of our team ultimately went to Jasper to be a part of the IBC Re-Entry Centre, meeting with residents as they returned to assess their properties. Additionally, we partnered with a restoration and home-building contractor who is prioritizing Peace Hills customers, which we hope will improve restoration and rebuild timelines.
On the topic partnerships, what we are immensely grateful for is the ones we have built with our reinsurance partners. They have stood by us through this event and reinforced the importance of having strong relationships with shared values and a common understanding of our purpose in insurance.
Given its significance, it was important to us to address the Jasper wildfire in isolation from the rest of this report. By doing so, we aim to acknowledge the gravity of this event while allowing the remainder of the report to focus on the many positive achievements and milestones our company accomplished in 2024. Further, reflecting on this critical, defining moment shines a spotlight on the importance of our values of compassion, dedication, and responsiveness, as well as Wahkôtowin, a Cree word embedded into our vision statement that represents the strength in interconnectedness and community. At Peace Hills, this is what we do differently and what enables us to weather any storm.
As is often the case in insurance, the show must go on.