Q: I was hired in 1968 and had Federal Employees’ Group Life Insurance deductions from the beginning of employment. However, in 1985 my branch of government was dissolved. As a result, the entire branch was transferred to the private sector (FHLBank). I would like to know what happened to the FEGLI deductions for those years of service. We were never refunded for those years worth of deductions.
A: The FEGLI is a term insurance program. As long as you were employed by the federal government and paid your share of the premiums through payroll deduction, you were covered. When you left the federal government, you received a free 31-day extension of coverage and were given the option of enrolling in a nongroup plan. After that, your FEGLI coverage ended. Because term insurance has no cash value, you weren’t entitled to a refund of your contributions.