Since the 2004 and 2005 hurricane seasons, Citizens has become a symbol of the significant trouble in Florida's property insurance market and a popular punching bag for politicians.
Just last week, Attorney General Charlie Crist - a candidate for governor - leveled harsh criticism while pushing for Gov. Jeb Bush and other members of the Florida Cabinet to reject an otherwise routine request by the insurance company for approval of its business plan.
Crist called out Citizens for "poor performance" and said it has "forgotten that it was created to serve the people." A Crist campaign spokeswoman said Tuesday he would have no comment on Ricker's resignation.
Ricker will stay until Nov. 1, then will continue as a paid consultant at least through December. Ricker made $220,000 a year as executive director, and will still draw his regular salary as a consultant, Citizens spokesman Rocky Scott said.
In his statement to the board, Ricker said that he was tired of missing his son's birthday parties, cutting short Christmas celebrations and working through vacations. Before joining Citizens, Ricker served in a variety of jobs in the insurance industry and in government, and was a consultant who helped create Citizens.
The company's board will meet Monday morning to decide whether to appoint Scott R. Wallace, Citizens' vice president for operations, as its new executive director. Wallace has been with Citizens since January, after more than 25 years in the insurance industry.
If Wallace is chosen as Ricker's replacement, he will need to be confirmed by the Florida Senate under a new state law. Whoever replaces Ricker will take over a growing company that was never meant to be more than the state's home insurer of last resort. Citizens is now the largest home insurer in Florida, with more than 1.2 million policies.
After the 2004 hurricane season, Citizens was plagued with operational trouble and lambasted for its claims-handling. In 2005, its chief operations officer resigned after he allegedly accepted money and a motorcycle in exchange for Citizens contracts.
But Citizens continues to have a vital role in Florida's insurance market, providing policies as more private insurers cut back in Florida. This year, Citizens was forced to take on more than 300,000 new policies after three insurers owned by Tampa-based Poe Financial Group went bankrupt.
State Rep. Dennis Ross, a Lakeland Republican and chairman of the House Insurance Committee, said: "The poor guy has had more crises than any guy in public life should ever have, and he's handled it well."
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