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Marck steps down from Lumley NZ’s top job

Lumley New Zealand CEO Rieny Marck has announced his retirement after the company returned disappointing results to its Wesfarmers parent.

The NZ market is now far more competitive than it was a few years ago, with companies like Zurich, National Transport Insurance and Allianz beefing up their presence in the country. Wesfarmers Insurance Division CEO Rob Scott said in February that the Lumley NZ operations would be restructured “to improve underwriting performance”.

Mr Marck, who was the CEO for nine years and had worked for Lumley for 18 years, finished up last week, and will continue on in a consulting capacity to help with the handover to his successor.

Gary Thomas, Lumley’s Broker GM, will be acting CEO. A search is on for a permanent replacement.

Mr Marck was also President of the Insurance Council of New Zealand (ICNZ) at a critical period, with new regulatory legislation being formed by the NZ Government.

ICNZ CEO Chris Ryan says Mr Marck “has been a highly successful president and has led the council through the whole lead-up, lobbying and submission process on the review of financial products and providers, among other things, including the Insurance Council’s well-received response to flooding and climate events during the past two years”.

Mr Marck’s last official act as president will be today, when he chairs the ICNZ AGM. Vice President Nick Hawkins, CEO of IAG NZ, is expected to take the top role.