I'm writing a special post about life insurance for Wednesday 22 August. (Over a week away. Plenty of time.) If you're a servicemember or a veteran with life insurance advice or a story, then I could use your help. Even if you're not in the military, you might have encountered a similar situation.
The post is part of Jeff Rose's "Life Insurance Movement". Jeff's a CFP & military veteran who blogs about financial planning at "Good Financial Cents". He started a similar awareness campaign last March for Roth IRAs, and it was a widespread success. Over 140 bloggers contributed their posts, and Jeff sponsored additional events. Jeff has learned a lot about cranking up a publicity machine, so this movement promises to be even bigger.
It’s Time For Another Movement – Life Insurance Style
I'll list the typical military insurance acronyms: SGLI, VGLI, & SBP. I'll also bring up other acronyms like the VA's DIC (and educational benefits) plus Social Security's survivor benefits. The VA even has a pretty comprehensive insurance calculator that includes these benefits in its algorithm. (Life Insurance Needs Calculator (U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs) )
However (as usual) this is not a benefits manual-- it's a financial guide. I'll provide links to the details but I'd rather dig into the questions behind the benefits. I'm interested in hearing from you about how you decided what amount of insurance to carry, what you expect it to accomplish, and how long you expect it to last. I'd also appreciate hearing what advice you'd like to pass on, and what you wish you'd done differently. For example servicemembers are notorious for not updating their beneficiary information after marriage, divorce, or other family changes. I want to help people avoid under-insuring, over-insuring, and having the benefits go to the "wrong" places.
Even after 22 August, I'm still interested in your input! This post will be the core of a new chapter of the next edition of "The Military Guide", with additional references & links.
The post is part of Jeff Rose's "Life Insurance Movement". Jeff's a CFP & military veteran who blogs about financial planning at "Good Financial Cents". He started a similar awareness campaign last March for Roth IRAs, and it was a widespread success. Over 140 bloggers contributed their posts, and Jeff sponsored additional events. Jeff has learned a lot about cranking up a publicity machine, so this movement promises to be even bigger.
It’s Time For Another Movement – Life Insurance Style
I'll list the typical military insurance acronyms: SGLI, VGLI, & SBP. I'll also bring up other acronyms like the VA's DIC (and educational benefits) plus Social Security's survivor benefits. The VA even has a pretty comprehensive insurance calculator that includes these benefits in its algorithm. (Life Insurance Needs Calculator (U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs) )
However (as usual) this is not a benefits manual-- it's a financial guide. I'll provide links to the details but I'd rather dig into the questions behind the benefits. I'm interested in hearing from you about how you decided what amount of insurance to carry, what you expect it to accomplish, and how long you expect it to last. I'd also appreciate hearing what advice you'd like to pass on, and what you wish you'd done differently. For example servicemembers are notorious for not updating their beneficiary information after marriage, divorce, or other family changes. I want to help people avoid under-insuring, over-insuring, and having the benefits go to the "wrong" places.
Even after 22 August, I'm still interested in your input! This post will be the core of a new chapter of the next edition of "The Military Guide", with additional references & links.