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By RICHARD MULLINS
The Tampa Tribune
Robert L. Ricker, the president and executive director of Citizens Property Insurance Corp. handed in his resignation today and said he would step down Nov. 1 from his $220,000 a year job.
Photo Courtesy:
Professional Insurance
Agents of Florida
Ricker said he was resigning to spend more time with his family.
“His talents will be sorely missed,†said Bruce Douglas, chairman of Citizens board. He said Ricker was “the right man in the right place at the right time.â€
Ricker has been at the helm of Citizens, the state backed insurer of last resort, for the past three years. During that time Citizens became the state’s largest home insurer as private insurance companies left the state amid a string of hurricanes that hit Florida in 2004 and 2005.
According to a statement from Citizens, Ricker has no immediate employment plans, but will remain a consultant to the insurance company through December to aid in a transition.
Ricker recommended that Scott R. Wallace, current senior vice president of operations at Citizens, be named as his replacement.
Allstate, State Farm and Nationwide Insurance Companies have owned Tallahassee since 2000. You would not believe the billboards they rent each year welcoming their state legislators back to Tallahassee at the beginning of each session. The insurance companies have a license to abuse us and that right must be taken away. We need an elected Insurance Commissioner who is accountable to the voters of the state. We need to turn Citizens into a mutual insurance company and change it from the insurer of last resort. Let Citizens compete by charging only what is absolutely necessary to cover its expenses and build reasonable reserves. In that way it save money on reinsurance. Do not provide corporate welfare to the insurance industry.
For those of you who seem to think homeowner’s insurance is mandantory, you should do some research. It is not mandantory. If you buy your house and don’t have to finance it, or if your home mortgage is paid off, you don’t have to have homeowners. You are then taking all of the risk upon yourself. Otherwise, if the home or property is mortgaged, the only way the bank can ensure that it’s collateral is replaced or repaired is to require homeowner’s insurance. If they lend you money to buy a house, and the house is destroyed, then what do they have when the home is gone - or damaged extensively, and you no longer have any reason to make the payments? They have 0!! They’ve lost the money they lent, plus the collateral.
I agree with Kary Thompson of Holiday in that God will deal with Mr. Ricker. It is shameful that our sorry legislature has allowed Florida insurance problems to get where they are. Time to clean house and put an all new legislature in place.
I have been caught in the jaws of citizens insurance company,my isurance was canceled because my mortgage company didn’t make the payment when due. Now I have been forced to except Citizen as my insurance carrier. We as Citizen should ban together to keep this from happening. They are forcing all the middle class to move out of Florida because of the shambles of home owners insurance,what would happen if all blue collar worker left Florida, this is the direction we are headed, are we just going to sit back and let them force us out of our homes we have worked hard for, we cannot just complain and not do something about it, I truly think we can make a difference.
Yes Joe, I knew all that. Thank you for elaborating on it the way you have.
This entire issue is obviously still a very emotionally charged subject (for everyone except for the insurance industry).
Needless to say, the insurance(s) aren’t making it personal, they strictly are geared towards the dollar.
The State of Florida HAD to do something (i.e. Citizens) to encourage people to stay living here in Florida.
I don’t have the answer (obviously) either. It’s just helplessly infuriating - but then again, you probably already know that yourself.
Do any of you realize that Citizens is not a normal insurance company? It was CREATED by the state, and that is why we all fund it. If Citizens weren’t here, then there is a good chance that ALL insurance companies would have pulled out of Florida or be charging EVEN HIGHER rates. Citizens was created to take the highest risk properties off the books after a significant number of companies had abandoned their Florida customers and no one was willing to pick them up. With the “worst” risks in this “special” pool (Citizens, or FWUA before it) the insurance companies agreed to write policies again.
Ever try to buy a house without insurance? Get a loan? Can’t do it.
Citizens is not the problem.
Florida needs to have a situation where the state either gets into the re-insurance business, or builds a major catastrophe fund that helps keep everyone’s exposure down. An extra penny or two sales tax might work, that way even the tourists help fund it.
the crook smells the ---- even before
it hits the fan.
how much does benifits add up two
after steping down ?
iam shure with todays technoligy
that someone
can invent a machine that can screw him in the ground when he dies.
Citizen’s insurance needs a complete overhaul. My Mortgage payment went from 646.00 to $1,011.00. I ended up having to sell my completely re-modeled home to an investor and losing what I put into the house. I also work for an organization that people who are in need call. The stories from people on fixed income and the elderly are heartbreaking. The citizens of our community are losing their homes, others having to choose between day to day necessities in order to make ends meet so that their properties are insured. Something has to be done!!!!!!!!
Lets guess who his insurance company is for his home? And gee we can pay it with no problem as we earn $220,000.What a joke this company is, and the state for allowing this to go on.But all the e-mails won’t solve the problem of rising cost it’s who we put into office and how they handle the roblems.
How nice Mr. I stole ALL your money get’s to leave & be with his family is his BIG FANCY house with his 15 cars & his kids guarantee into college & his assurance for the REST OF HIS LIFE. I say enjoy it while you can because IT will catch up with you. THE COST for what you’ve done to millions of people who live “normal” lives just trying to make ends meat WILL come back around. OUR GOD is an AWESOME God who won’t allow idiots like you to go unpunished. May you rot in ---- well you get the picture!
Get real! How nice that he’s going to spend more time with his family now that he’s “sucked” all the money out of insurers. Let’s get the “real” story. How can he live with himself knowing that in no way did he earn or deserve that high of an income. And he’s leaving because he can’t handle all the accusations; questions regarding the insurance scandles & yes that’s what it is. When will the public get it!? Insurance is no “insurance” it’s just a way for people like Richard Riker to “steal” legally. It should be illegal! I’m sick of hearing about the home owners getting stuck having to pay huge insurance bills & for what! You should have the right to JUST SAY NO TO INSURANCE! Florida is so backwards.
make Insurance voluntary, not Manditory. NOTHING is guranteed!
Cont’d from previous comment section:
Right or wrong, fair or unfair, that’s capitalism for you. Actually - that’s reality. Sure some of it hurts. Some instances burn me up, but that still doesn’t change anything.
Bottom line, everyone seems to be in it for himself.
Nooo Martha, you just don’t understand (I am being zynical), they DO have Accouting 101, in addition they have ScrewCitizens 101 - ScrewCitizens Advanced.
What we individuals are really looking for is that these companies jump to our aide when we need them. What we individuals don’t get is that these companies are in business to MAKE money, not to PAY out money.
Yes, I am all the way there with you and Nathan, aaaand I am almost tempted to save the damn money in my own account (even though there are hardly any interest to be earned anywhere - so I’d almost be better with the money under the mattress).
The “rich” people have worked for their money - some through hard work, some with lots of luck (right time in right place) - you name it. To those of us who are middle class (assuming that’s what we are) the “rich” people always get away with having to pay out the least and getting the most for their money.
I am very upset that citizens has raised there rates. By it going up on insurance my house payment has went from $500.00 a month to almost $800.00 a month . I am a single grandmother raising two grandson’s, on a fixed income and it is getting harder to keep my house for us.....
About time, They need to clean house.
DO NOT LET THE VP TAKE OVER. FIND SOMEONE WITH ACCOUNTING 101 AS A MAJOR.
SOMEONE WHO CARES ABOUT THE FUTURE OF THIS STATE AND OTHER STATES TO FOLLOW. SOMEONE NOT IN BED WITH THE INSURANCE COMPANIES AS ONE LARGE NEWSPAPER QUOTED JEB BUSH TO BE.
It is bad when you have to watch
people losing their homes in your state
AND THE BIG GUYS WITH THE BIG SALARIES JUST WALK. SEVERAL CLASS ACTION LAW SUITS ARE ON THE WAY UP TO CITIZEN’S. MAYBE THAT’S WHY HE IS GOING........
Makes me wonder, why he is really stepping down. Citizens is a big rip off. I’m still upset that, we as homeowner, whom do not carry citizens have to pay for their short fall. I’m still waiting for them to tell everyone where all the monies have gone post the huricanes in 2004. From 1994 up to 2003. I’m sure they will not breath a word of big bonuses to upper management, which by way do not deserve it, the little people do all the work, Management takes the praise
and the money. Just like most company’s do.
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Posted by Ken Tennis, Hudson, Fl on 09/26 at 05:50 PM
Most people don’t remember but way back in the late 70’s an insurance company went before the state and asked for a rate increase. Their argument was, “We made more money last year on our investments than we did on our homeowners premiums and therefore we need to raise rates.”
My first thought was, “If they hadn’t OVERCHARGED the citizen’s of Florida they WOULDN’T HAVE HAD THE MONEY TO BUILD THOSE HUGE EDIFICES they call ‘investments’. Maybe it’s time we looked back and tell the insurance companies that they made money in the past and now there’s been a ‘bump in the road’ and maybe they need to mortgage or sell some of those properties that OUR insurance premiums built and use that money to offset some of the losses from 2004-2005.
But that won’t happen with a Republican administration!