Sgt. Shopper: Don’t be rushed or misled by insurance pitchmen - Military Money, Navy Money, navy pay, pay charts - Navy Times

Sgt. Shopper: Don’t be rushed or misled by insurance pitchmen

Strolling through the mall or waiting in line to see a movie, you’re probably not thinking about buying life insurance or making an investment. But you might be approached by a salesman, so make sure you ask the right questions, get information in writing and do the research before you bite.

Anyone selling life insurance on base must have permission from the installation and must follow regulations. But since those regulations on base have been tightened, it sounds as if some salesmen are setting up shop outside the gates in places frequented by service members.

Before you buy life insurance, consider that you have up to $400,000 worth of insurance available through the government’s Servicemember’s Group Life Insurance program, at a cost of $27 a month. The vast majority of troops have it.

When you add in the military’s no-cost, $100,000 “death gratuity” for the families of troops who die on active duty, $500,000 is probably plenty of insurance, especially for younger families. To check, you can noodle with a free life insurance calculator on the Department of Veterans Affairs Web site. Click on “Life Insurance Tools.”

Sometimes these offers can be confusing. One soldier said a salesman was selling an investment at Cross Creek Mall in Fayetteville, N.C., near Fort Bragg. The salesman’s card had the Military Benefit Association name and logo on it, but it also said “American Fidelity Life.”

The product he was selling was not MBA’s life insurance product; he was selling American Fidelity’s product, a life insurance policy with a “side fund” attached to it that is billed as a retirement investment. The American Fidelity product’s monthly premiums are higher than for MBA’s product, which is pure life insurance.

The soldier asked the right questions and was not satisfied with the answers. The salesman told him he needed to sign up right away, and that he could help him pay the monthly payments by allotment through his MyPay account. The soldier walked away.

Roy Gibson, president of the MBA, said it is sometimes frustrating for his association when agents sell different policies for different companies and end up confusing service members.

“All we sell is group term life insurance,” he said, with a specific premium for a specific amount of insurance, depending on age. For a service member under age 39, the cost is $3.25 a month per $50,000 of life insurance — $16.25 a month for $250,000 of insurance, the same rate for $250,000 worth of SGLI. Clear information is available on MBA’s Web site and on its insurance applications.

Information on the American Fidelity product was not available at press time.

The Defense Department and the North Carolina Department of Insurance have put out a flier with insurance red flags:

• You are approached by someone, or receive a card or a mailer offering information on your military or VA benefits, or about a military service organization — and later receive a sales pitch for insurance or investments.

• You are offered free pizza, movie tickets or another freebie to attend a meeting, on or off the installation, where you receive a sales pitch.

• A salesperson says or implies that SGLI might not always pay, or that the federal Thrift Savings Plan is not a good investment.

• You are pressured to sign up or are rushed through an application.

• You are asked to show your Common Access Card or access your MyPay account to set up payments.

• The salesperson doesn’t give you copies of your paperwork and information clearly describing what you bought.

If any of these red flags apply to you, contact your installation’s financial readiness office. You can also report such activities to your state’s insurance commissioner. Contact information can be found at the National Association of Insurance Commissioners Web site.

Share a ride home

Looking for a ride home for the holidays? Or, do you want some riders to share your cost? Find each other on the new www.militaryrideshare.com, started by former Marine Jen McGillis, who remembers looking at all the base stickers on other cars traveling on I-95 from Camp Lejeune, N.C., to Ohio when she had those long weekends.

As of early November, 17 people were either seeking or offering a ride, but McGillis hopes to build the free service in the future.

A word to the wise: There’s no screening process. Although this is marketed only to the military community, take precautions such as meeting up with the person before you travel, McGillis said. If your gut is sending warning signals, don’t do it.