Have you suffered a traumatic injury while serving in a branch of the military? Whether you were on or off duty when your injury occurred, you may be entitled to a tax-free cash payment of up to $100,000 under TSGLI – the Servicemembers’ Group Life Insurance Traumatic Injury Protection Program.
If you or a family member might be entitled to benefits under this program, the TSGLI attorneys at Disparti Law Group, P.A., can provide advice and help you prepare your claim. If you have filed an initial claim that was denied, we also can help you appeal. Simply Contact us today for a free initial consultation at 866-236-0481 or fill out our online contact form.
With more than 30 years of experience handling government benefits claims, the government benefits lawyers at Disparti Law Group, P.A. serve clients in Chicago, Aurora, Naperville, Elgin, Oak Lawn, Cicero, Wheaton, Schaumburg, in addition to clients all across Illinois and the United States.
You don’t have to fight the government by yourself. Contact us today so that we can put our experience and knowledge to work for you.
Your TSGLI Benefits
TSGLI is intended to help traumatically injured service members and their families meet the financial hardships that so often accompany the time spent recovering from a severe injury.
TSGLI operates as an insurance benefit attached to your Servicemembers’ Group Life Insurance (SGLI). The benefit covers active-duty members of the military, Reservists, and also National Guard members.
Every service member who has SGLI also has TSGLI effective December 1, 2005, unless the service member opted out. The benefit also applies retroactively for service members who suffered severe losses from traumatic injuries between October 7, 2001, and November 30, 2005. Note that the Veterans’ Benefit Improvement Act of 2010 removed a previous TSGLI requirement that a member’s injuries had to be incurred in Operation Enduring Freedom or Operation Iraqi Freedom.
What You Need To Know About TSGLI Claims
TSGLI can provide substantial tax-free benefits – up to $100,000 – for service members who suffered a traumatic injury while they were in the service. Benefits may be available even where the member’s injury was not related to their military service. Benefit recipients may use their money in any way they wish. The lump-sum payments come with no strings attached.
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs sets out the following requirements that must be met in order to prove eligibility for TSGLI benefits:
- If your injury happened on or after December 1, 2005, you must be insured by SGLI when you experience a traumatic event. For service members injured between October 7, 2001, and November 30, 2005, SGLI coverage is not required to be eligible for TSGLI.
- You must incur a “scheduled loss,” and the loss has to be a direct result of a traumatic injury. Scheduled losses include, for example, loss of sight, hearing and limbs; paralysis; traumatic brain injury; and coma. To see a full list of scheduled losses, Click here.
- Your traumatic injury must have occurred before midnight of the day that you separate from the uniformed services.
- You must suffer a scheduled loss within two years of the traumatic injury.
- You must survive for a period of at least seven full days from the date of the traumatic injury.
It’s important to know, too, that a scheduled loss” under TSGLI does not necessarily require that s service member suffered an amputated limb or lost vision (for example). You can also be eligible for TSGLI benefits if you have suffered an “other traumatic injury” (OTI) that prevents you from independently performing at least two of six activities of daily living (ADL). These include activities such as bathing, continence, dressing, eating, toileting and transferring.
Unfortunately, more than half of all TSGLI claims based on other traumatic injuries are denied.
You have the right to appeal the denial of a claim for TSGLI benefits, whether the claim involved an OTI or another scheduled loss. For help in obtaining the benefits you deserve, you can rely on the skilled TSGLI benefits lawyers at Disparti Law Group, P.A.
Contact Our TSGLI Claims Lawyers Today
If you or a loved one need legal help with any aspect of a TSGLI claim, call Disparti Law Group, P.A., toll free at 866-236-0481 or contact us online. Your initial consultation is always free of charge.
If our disability benefits lawyers accept your case, we will work on a contingency fee basis. That means we get paid for our services only if you recover money. It’s important that you call us right away so that you don’t risk waiving your right to possible compensation.
