Australian insurers are preparing for potential claims from Tropical Cyclone Mitchell after the Australian Reinsurance Pool Corporation (ARPC) formally declared the system a cyclone event under the Terrorism and Cyclone Insurance Act 2003. Acting on advice from the Bureau of Meteorology (BoM), ARPC has confirmed that Tropical Cyclone Mitchell is a Declared Cyclone Event, with the official start of the event – and the associated claims period – set at 10pm AEST on Feb. 6, 2026. The event has been recorded under ARPC event code 20260206-Mitchell.
In its announcement, ARPC said: “As notified by the Bureau of Meteorology (Bureau)… ARPC wishes to advise that the following cyclone event has begun as a Declared Cyclone Event for the purposes of the Terrorism and Cyclone Insurance Act 2003.” It reminded insurers and policyholders that the BoM-notified start date and time serve as the commencement of the claims period for policies that sit within the cyclone pool. “Please refer to the date and time when the cyclone began, as notified to ARPC by the bureau. This also acts as the beginning of the claims period date and time,” it said. ARPC will issue a further notice once BoM confirms when the cyclone has ended, at which point the end of the claims period will also be established.
The declaration has been formalised through the “Terrorism and Cyclone Insurance (Beginning of Cyclone Event – Cyclone Mitchell (20260206)) Instrument 2026.” In that instrument, ARPC chief executive Christopher Wallace, acting as a delegate of the corporation under subsection 8F(1) of the Terrorism and Cyclone Insurance Act 2003 and based on a notice from BoM, stated that he:
The timing has implications for primary insurers, as it determines which losses fall within the ARPC cyclone pool period for eligible residential, strata, and small business policies and informs event-coding and aggregation in insurer systems.
While the ARPC framework defines the financial and regulatory parameters, Mitchell’s physical impact is being felt along Western Australia’s northwest and Gascoyne coasts, where there are residential, commercial, and motor insurance exposures in regional centres. BoM has forecast that Tropical Cyclone Mitchell would track from the North West Cape down past the Ningaloo coast into the Gascoyne region, making landfall on Feb. 9. The cyclone was downgraded to category 1 on Feb. 9 morning as it moved south of Exmouth, but warnings remained in place.
BoM senior meteorologist Angus Hines said the system’s structure was changing as it moved closer to shore. He noted that “as a category 1 tropical cyclones this close to the country, we still have got our tropical cyclones warning in play for this area here.” Emergency WA has issued an emergency warning instructing residents in parts of the Pilbara and Gascoyne to seek shelter. The warning applies to communities from Coral Bay to Minilya Roadhouse and north of Ningaloo, as well as areas south of Minilya Roadhouse to north of Wooramel, including Carnarvon. “There is a threat to lives and homes. You are in danger and need to act immediately,” the Department of Fire and Emergency Services WA (DFES WA) said, as reported by News.com.au.
Wind gusts have been high in several locations. BoM data showed gusts above 150km/h in the Exmouth region, with Legendre Island recording 169km/h and Barrow Island reaching 148km/h. On the mainland, top wind speeds included 120km/h in Onslow, 100km/h in Karratha, and 96km/h in Mardie. As of midday Feb. 9, the cyclone’s sustained winds near the centre were about 85km/h, with gusts expected to reach 120km/h. Mitchell is also associated with heavy rainfall and flooding risk. Localised moderate to heavy rain is possible over the west Pilbara coast, extending into the Gascoyne region on Feb. 9 and 10.
Hines warned that up to 100mm of rain could fall in some inland areas as the system moves across Western Australia and transitions into a tropical low. “For some parts, this will be really welcome rain after a run of very dry months through summer so far, but for others, this rain may come in too quickly causing flooding concerns,” Hines said. Abnormally high tides have been reported along the far west Pilbara and Gascoyne coasts, with elevated sea levels affecting Exmouth in the morning and moving south to Coral Bay and then Carnarvon. BoM said high tides along the Gascoyne coast, including Carnarvon, and possibly as far south as Denham, were expected to coincide with Mitchell’s passage.
The cyclone has interrupted essential services and community infrastructure in areas with insured property and motor risks. As at 9am on Feb. 9, more than 1,700 customers in Western Australia’s north remained without electricity, including around 1,675 in Exmouth and 83 in parts of Karratha such as Pegs Creek and Bulgarra. DFES WA reported several call-outs overnight, mainly from the Karratha region due to fallen trees. Online, residents have shared images and video of wind damage to trees, vehicles, and structures, which could result in building, contents, and motor claims once conditions ease and access improves.
A large number of schools have been closed for at least one day across affected towns including Karratha, Exmouth, Onslow, Carnarvon, Shark Bay, and Gascoyne Junction. DFES WA said: “No one will be allowed on site as it will not be safe. Parents and carers are asked to keep their children home.” Emergency shelters have been opened to support residents in high-risk areas, including facilities in Onslow, Exmouth, Carnarvon, and Denham. A cyclone emergency warning remains in place for a broad area encompassing Onslow, parts of the North West Coastal Highway, Ningaloo,, and coastal and inland communities through to Carnarvon.
Mitchell arrives less than two weeks after the Insurance Council of Australia (ICA) released data showing that extreme weather events in 2025 generated almost $3.5 billion in insured losses from about 264,000 claims. The ICA reported that five events were declared significant or catastrophic in 2025: the North Queensland floods in February, Ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred in March, Mid North Coast floods in May, and two severe storm outbreaks in October and November. Ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred was the largest single event, with 132,000 claims and more than $1.5 billion in insured losses.
The severe spring storms that hit South-East Queensland and northern New South Wales from late October to early November produced $601 million in insured losses from 35,500 claims. Further storms and hail later in November resulted in another 70,200 claims and $814 million in insured losses. Together, the two spring storm events accounted for about $1.4 billion of the annual total. The ICA’s figures exclude some smaller but locally focused events such as Western Queensland flooding, storms in Casterton and Harden, and bushfires in Halls Gap. For insurers, reinsurers, and brokers, Tropical Cyclone Mitchell is the latest cyclone to affect catastrophe management, event-coding, exposure aggregation, and claims surge planning under the expanded federal cyclone pool framework, particularly across remote and regional Western Australia.
