Quick answer
Water damage and freezing is one of the most frequent and costly categories of U.S. homeowners insurance claims — roughly 1 in 60 to 1 in 67 insured homes files a water-damage-related claim annually (Insurance Information Institute), representing more total insurance losses in recent years than fire and theft combined. Separately, a 2007 EPA-affiliated peer-reviewed study estimated that dampness and mold exposure in U.S. homes is attributable to 21% of current asthma cases (95% CI 12-29%), at an estimated annual cost of $3.5 billion — underscoring that a water event left improperly dried isn't just a property-damage question.
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Numbers about water damage get repeated online until the original source is lost. This page traces every statistic back to where it actually came from.
How common are water-damage insurance claims?
According to Insurance Information Institute (Triple-I) data, roughly 1 in 60 to 1 in 67 insured homes files a property damage claim caused by water damage or freezing in a given year — one of the most frequent categories of homeowners insurance claims. Water damage and freezing has been reported to account for roughly 24% to 28% of all homeowners insurance losses by value across recent reporting periods, and in at least one recent year represented more total insurance losses than fire and theft claims combined.
What does an average water-damage claim cost?
Reported average claim amounts have varied by reporting window: Triple-I data covering 2018-2022 put the average water damage and freezing claim at approximately $13,954, while more recent 2019-2023 data reported an average of approximately $15,400 — an upward trend consistent with broader property-claim cost inflation over that period, not inconsistent data.
How common is dampness and water damage in U.S. homes generally?
The U.S. EPA has stated that roughly one-third to one-half of all structures in the United States have damp conditions that may encourage mold development. A 2007 peer-reviewed study — Mudarri, D. and Fisk, W.J., “Public health and economic impact of dampness and mold,” Indoor Air, 2007 — estimated approximately 47% of U.S. homes have dampness or mold problems. Separately, U.S. Census American Housing Survey data has found roughly 9.9% of U.S. homes reporting water damage from exterior leakage and roughly 8.1% from interior leakage in a representative survey year — the real underlying events that, left improperly dried, become the dampness problem the EPA and Mudarri & Fisk figures describe.
The asthma burden attributable to dampness
The same Mudarri and Fisk (2007) study modeled the population attributable fraction for asthma and home dampness/mold exposure in the United States:
- 21% of current U.S. asthma cases (95% CI: 12-29%) are estimated attributable to dampness and mold exposure in the home.
- Of the roughly 21.8 million Americans reported to have asthma at the time of the study, this translates to approximately 4.6 million cases (range 2.7-6.3 million) attributable to home dampness/mold.
- The estimated national annual cost: $3.5 billion (range $2.1-4.8 billion).
This is exactly why the 24-72 hour drying window matters beyond property preservation — see our health-effects research summary for the full evidence review.
Why we cite it this way
Every figure on this page traces to a named peer-reviewed study, a U.S. government survey, or a named industry body (Insurance Information Institute) — named specifically so it can be verified directly, not taken on a restoration company’s word.
[Sources: Insurance Information Institute (Triple-I), Facts + Statistics: Homeowners and Renters Insurance (iii.org); Mudarri, D. & Fisk, W.J. (2007), “Public health and economic impact of dampness and mold,” Indoor Air, Wiley; U.S. EPA (epa.gov/mold); U.S. Census Bureau, American Housing Survey.]