AIA/PA

Kelly Air Force Base, Texas

The young Air Intelligence Agency member was only 20 years old, driving down a dark road last spring, when it happened. He lost control of his car.

In the blink of an eye, his short life was over. Police investigators were unable to determine why the accident occurred. Perhaps he had something on his mind. Maybe he was distracted by something in the car or along the road. No one will ever know for sure.

But one thing is tragically clear. When he died, he left behind not only a grieving widow, but thousands of dollars of debt and no life insurance.

Just weeks before the accident, the airman had visited his military personnel flight and declined Servicemen's Group Life Insurance, even though he had no other personal life insurance.

This airman's tragic, true story emphasizes the importance of ensuring our loved ones are always provided for, either through SGLI or other personal life insurance.

The military makes it easy to do the right thing. In accordance with public law, the Defense Finance and Accounting Service began increasing automatic SGLI coverage from $100,000 to $200,000 in April, 1996. This ensures that every military member is fully covered through payroll deduction, unless he or she visits the local military personnel flight to decline or reduce the coverage.

Some people decide to decline SGLI because they carry personal life insurance through a civilian agent. If you can find a better premium that way, then it certainly makes sense to buy the most cost-effective policy. The objective is simply to have life insurance for your loved ones.

Unfortunately, though, many junior members decline SGLI completely, not because they have other life insurance, but because they think they can't afford SGLI.

But in most cases, the cost of SGLI can't be beat, according to Master Sgt. Terence D. Pope, chief of the 694th Mission Support Squadron's customer service office at Fort Meade, Md. SGLI costs only 80 cents per $10,000 of coverage, he said.

"You're basically talking about $8 a payday for $200,000 of life insurance," Pope said. "And if necessary, you can reduce the cost by electing a lesser amount," he added.

Similar coverage through a civilian insurance company can cost as much as $11.50 per payday, according to a civilian on-line life insurance quote service.

Eight dollars each payday is a lot of money when you're on a tight budget, but it's a small price to pay for peace of mind, knowing that if something happens to you, your loved ones will be provided for.

After the military began the automatic SGLI payroll deduction in April, many people realized they could afford it after all, according to Pope. "They didn't miss the money as much as they thought they would," he said.

Other members decline SGLI because they are unmarried and see no reason to carry life insurance. Certainly, if you aren't married and have no children, you have less need for life insurance than if you have a spouse or children who rely on your income.

But even if you are single, your parents, siblings or other family members can still benefit from SGLI. This can be important if you carry an automobile loan, student loan or other debt. In many cases, your family may be held responsible for repaying your debt if you die.

If so, you may decide that you need just enough SGLI so that your family could repay your debts. In this case, you can elect any amount of coverage from $10,000 to $200,000, according to Pope.

Another reason some people decline SGLI is because they didn't like it when the military automatically increased all members' coverage to $200,000, Pope said.

"Some people came into the MPF saying, What gives them the right to sign me back up for SGLI after I declined it?"

Unfortunately, the airman who was killed in the car accident reacted exactly this way. After the military automatically re-enrolled him in SGLI in April, he went to the MPF to decline the insurance.

By automatically re-enrolling every member for the full amount of SGLI, the military has made it easy for everyone to have coverage. Under this system, if you don't have SGLI, then you've made a deliberate decision to decline the insurance, as opposed to not having coverage because a busy schedule kept you from visiting the MPF to sign up for SGLI.

Sometimes, especially when we are young, it's hard to imagine dying and leaving our families behind to carry on. Thankfully, statistically, most of us will be around for a long time to come.

But there is always a chance for unexpected death. And it does happen. The airman killed last spring, for example, probably assumed his own death was still light years away.

If you don't currently have SGLI or some form of personal life insurance, think about this young airman and his wife tonight and consider re-enrolling in the SGLI program.

SGLI buys us peace of mind that our loved ones will be taken care of and our financial obligations will be met, regardless of what fate has in store for us.