Older Veterans May I Ask?

[mightyoak]

Hello ,Can any of you older vetereans answer a few questions for me? I have a case before Veterans board of appeals. I am the daughter of a deceased veteran. Father left the military 1953, policy was probably paid of in the 1970's. That was a such a long time ago.

If you have a life insurance policy thru the VA, paid off many many years ago. Do you get a periodic statement from veterans affairs on that policy. Telling you the amount, value etc. It was actually a NSLI policy. But Vgli would have been similiar I presume. Are you ever updated? i would appreciate any answers and figured you would be the people to ask. Thanks so much!!!

[broncovet]

I am an "older" Veteran, but not THAT old. The VA life insurance sends me a notice each year of what my didvidend is, and other information about my life insurance policy.

However, if a Veteran moves, the right hand of the VA does not know what the left hand is doing. You cant just change your address in one place, it is a complex procedure to change your address: You will have to change it with VA medical, VA compensation and Pension, VA life insurance, Education benefits, Regional Office etc, etc. If your VA comp and pen was "farmed out" to another regional office, then the VA will be confused forever. Your AOJ (Regional office in your home) may forget to tell the RO that your compensation is farmed out to, so neither one knows what the other is doing. Its a huge bureacatic mess. If you forget to change your address with even one of these things, the others can feed off your old address and foul everything up. They do this so they can avoid paying comp and pen benefits: They send you a notice of a comp and pen exam to the "last known address", which is usually the address you just moved from. Then, when you dont show for a c and p exam, they cut your benefits, and "blame the Veteran" for not sending the VA notice of your new address.

It is one of the many dirty tricks the VA uses to avoid paying benefits.

Hello ,Can any of you older vetereans answer a few questions for me? I have a case before Veterans board of appeals. I am the daughter of a deceased veteran. Father left the military 1953, policy was probably paid of in the 1970's. That was a such a long time ago.

If you have a life insurance policy thru the VA, paid off many many years ago. Do you get a periodic statement from veterans affairs on that policy. Telling you the amount, value etc. It was actually a NSLI policy. But Vgli would have been similiar I presume. Are you ever updated? i would appreciate any answers and figured you would be the people to ask. Thanks so much!!!

[broncovet]

Mightoak

Remember there are two basic kinds of Life Insurance:

Term Life, which can be thought of as "rented" insurance. If you dont pay your "rent" on the term insurance, you get "kicked out" and have no insurance.

The other kind is "whole Life" which is "owned" insurance. You make payments on it, as you would a car, but you dont have to give it back. You get to keep it for life.

Most whole life policies "pay up" in a number of years, similar to the way you pay your car off. When you get your car paid off, you get to keep the car, and enjoy it, without making payments any more. The same is true with most whole life policies..they "pay up" and you own the policy, no more payments are due and you keep the insurance, or can sell it to the insurance company for its cash value, or, even borrow money on it using the policy as collateral.

If your father borrowed too much money on his whole life policy, it can cause the policy to lapse if that money is not paid back.

If your father had term insurance, it never pays off, and he did not likely have any insurance, unless he was still paying premiums, possibly automatically deducted from his checking account. Kind of like rent..and then not paying the rent anymore..you cant stay there, your rent does not "pay off" the house for you, it pays it off for the landlord.

[john999]

Broncovet

You should shout that post of yours from the roof tops. Heaven protect the vet who moves in the middle of the claims process. The more often you move the more often your claims will be screwed up for sure. I have been in the same place for 20 years, and I sometimes get mail and/or a call from the VA about a vet with my same first and last name that is not me. After 20 years they still get me mixed up with other vets and I did find another vet's stuff in my C-file when I got a copy of it.

The VA's term insurance is ok if no other insurance company will take you. When I was healthy I got a life insurance policy for 250,000 for a 20 year term for just about 700 bucks a year. Now I could not get it from anyone. I got the VA life insurance and because I am IU I have no premiums. That is a good deal. I get buried in a VA cemetary and hopefully I die from SC cause. This way the wife will get money so she can then marry a younger guy and spend all my IRA money. Good deal!

[mightyoak]

Thank you gentlemen. That was helpful!!! and it gives me something to think about. I think my fathers policy was the kind that was paid off,(NSLI) that sat for years earning interest.( not the term life). This was so long ago. It must have been paid up in the early 1970's .Of course in those days it was affordable.

We did move in 1970, so that gives me something else to think about.

Maybe he never notified all those branches of the VA. That could be a possibility .

Oh I am catching on to the giant bureau called the Va!

I was just sort of curious that there was No information in our home that even suggested my father had a military policy. All the years I have been around the house, I have never seen any. I wondered if the Va ever updated anyone.

Thanks!!!!

[LarryJ]

"Of course in those days it was affordable."

That is also relative.

My first month's pay in the USMC was $92.60.

[mightyoak]

92.60? Oh do you remeber this Larry? My father talked about getting a 500$ military loan to buy his first house! Holy cow.