Iberia bears brunt of Europe’s storm season

The latest Marsh Re report indicates that Europe’s 2025-26 storm season matched historical averages when viewed across the continent. Nonetheless, storms struck southern Europe with greater intensity, and Iberia experienced the most severe effects.

In the Iberian region, Spain and Portugal together accounted for an unusually large share of insured losses. Those losses were driven primarily by Storm Kristin, which generated an estimated insured loss of €1.73 bn.

The season also featured a cluster of back-to-back storms, Leonardo, Marta and Nls, that arrived within days across the Iberian Peninsula. This rapid succession of events concentrated damage in the south while limiting exposure in traditionally vulnerable areas such as northern France, the Benelux countries and Germany.

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That clustering helped keep damage lower in those northern regions, yet Iberia saw a disproportionate impact.

Sandra Hansen, head of international peril advisory at Marsh Re, says storm frequency will remain variable from year to year, but individual events are likely to bring heavier rain. She also notes that a warming climate will probably intensify flood risk, emphasizing that flash-flooding demands particular attention and that resilience is key to mitigation.

The analysis projects that climate change could reduce the overall frequency and severity of windstorms and river floods in southern Europe. However, extreme rainfall may raise flash-flood hazards, creating new challenges for risk managers.