Global insured losses from natural disaster events for the first three quarters of this year reached $88 billion, according to Aon’s latest Q3 Global Catastrophe Recap report.

The figure is 17 percent higher than the 21st century annual average, driven by severe convective storms (SCS) in Italy and the U.S., and the Maui wildfire—one of the deadliest and costliest wildfires in U.S. history.

For the first time, insured losses from SCS in the U.S. surpassed $50 billion and accounted for 60 percent of global insured losses, the report stated.

In third-quarter 2023 alone, Aon stated there were at least four individual billion-dollar insured loss events for SCS in the U.S., a figure that is likely to increase to seven events due to continued loss development.

Europe sustained two individual billion-dollar SCS events, including Italy recording its first billion-dollar SCS insurance loss.

Year-to-date economic losses total $295 billion, the report noted, compared to the 21st century annual average of $310 billion.

The aggregated death toll from 2023 natural catastrophe events surpassed 75,000 during the same period, making 2023 the deadliest year since 2010.

Widespread flooding in Beijing and several Chinese provinces in early August resulted in the costliest global economic loss event of Q3, the report noted.

On September 8, a 6.8 magnitude earthquake occurred in the Moroccan High Atlas Mountain range. Nearly 3,000 lives were lost and more than 5,600 people were injured. The earthquake caused significant material damage across the affected area, Aon reported.

Destructive flash flooding in northeastern Libya in early September damaged thousands of buildings in Derna city and ranked as the second deadliest event of the year, with more than 4,300 fatalities.

Hurricane losses in the U.S. were lower than average in the third quarter, considered the peak time for the Pacific and Atlantic hurricane seasons. Two notable tropical systems, Hilary and Idalia, still caused significant losses that, collectively, reached billions of dollars of damage.

“Global natural catastrophes killed many people and caused significant structural and economic damage during the first nine months of 2023,” said Michal Lorinc, head of Aon’s Catastrophe Insight. “Wildfire and Severe Convective Storm were once again highly prominent, and Aon’s research reveals that both are becoming increasingly costly to insurers, communities and governments. In the U.S., around 80 percent of SCS loss growth can be explained by exposure change—highlighting the need for insurers to understand underlying exposures in their portfolios.”