Climate-related economic losses

Between 1980 and 2023, the costs of climate-related extremes amounted to an estimated EUR 8.5 million (2023 prices) in Czechia. Hydrological hazards (floods) accounted for almost 78% of the costs of climate-related extremes, while meteorological hazards (storms, including lightning and hail), together with mass movements, accounted for around 16% of the total. In terms of climatological hazards, heatwaves caused around 4% of total losses while the remaining 2% were caused by droughts, forest fires and cold waves. The most expensive hazards included flooding (1997, 2002, 2010, 2013), windstorms (2007, 2008, 2017, 2019, 2020), extraordinary windstorms associated with destructive tornadoes and downbursts (2021) and heavy snow, ice and hail (2006, 2010). According to estimates, only approximately 12% of total losses were covered by insurance. However, long-term droughts have not yet been recorded in the statistics of insurance companies. This is becoming a problem, since the long-term droughts in Czechia represent the most serious manifestations of climate change, with the greatest potential impacts on society and the environment. As severe climate-related extreme events (especially drought) are expected to intensify further, it seems unlikely – despite, for example, the many activities and measures under the national action plan on adaptation to climate change and despite significant subsidies from the integrated regional operational programme – that economic losses will be reduced by 2030.