Smart Score Life Insurance: The Smartest Way To Insure

Smart Score is a proprietary laboratory analysis methodology used in life insurance underwriting. It is a transparent algorithm designed to improve mortality prediction and is based on a wide range of factors, including laboratory values and body measurements from a large dataset of applicants. The algorithm aims to provide a more accurate assessment of an individual's mortality risk, which can impact life insurance coverage and premium costs.

Smart Score is a transparent algorithm to improve mortality

Smart Score is a transparent algorithm designed to improve mortality predictions in life insurance underwriting. It is a risk score based on a wide range of factors, including laboratory values and body measurements from a large dataset of applicants. This rich dataset allows for a more nuanced understanding of an individual's health and mortality risk, moving beyond a simple knockout system based on a few thresholds.

The traditional knockout system uses specific thresholds of BMI, blood pressure, and cholesterol values to determine an individual's Preferred class eligibility. While this system is clear and easy to understand, it has its limitations and challenges. It does not consider the interplay between various health factors and can lead to frustrating conversations when clients narrowly miss out on a better class.

Smart Score, on the other hand, takes into account dozens of different factors, including physical activity levels, and analyses their individual contributions to overall health. This comprehensive approach has been shown to outperform the traditional knockout system in studies. By breaking down the impact of each factor, Smart Score provides a more transparent understanding of an individual's health profile, even in situations where the insurer prefers to use knockouts.

The algorithm is also age and sex-corrected, minimising the impact of these variables on the final score. This ensures that the distribution of scores remains constant over time and across different demographics. The evidence supporting Smart Score's effectiveness has been published in peer-reviewed literature and industry journals, providing detailed insights into the mortality risk associated with individual laboratory measurements and the overall performance of the algorithm.

In conclusion, Smart Score is a powerful tool that improves the accuracy and transparency of mortality predictions in life insurance underwriting. By considering a broader range of factors and their complex interactions, Smart Score offers a more nuanced understanding of an individual's health and mortality risk, leading to fairer and more informed decisions in the life insurance industry.

It is based on a large data set of over 15 million applicants

Smart Score is a transparent algorithm used in life insurance underwriting. It is based on a large data set of over 15 million applicants, over 500,000 of whom have died since the data collection began. Each individual in the data set has up to 50 different laboratory values and body measurements. This makes for a rich data set that can be used to determine which factors are most important in assessing an applicant's mortality risk and how they balance each other.

The Smart Score approach is different from the traditional cut-off system, which uses specific thresholds of BMI, blood pressure, and cholesterol values to determine Preferred class eligibility. Instead, Smart Score considers about three dozen different factors, making it a more comprehensive assessment tool. This increase in accuracy, however, comes with an increase in complexity, which can make conversations with field agents more difficult.

Smart Score breaks down the individual contribution of each factor to the overall score in a simple debit/credit scale familiar to life insurance professionals. This transparency allows insurers to understand the weight of each factor and make more informed decisions.

The effectiveness of Smart Score has been demonstrated in studies comparing its performance to real-life knockout systems, with Smart Score coming out ahead every time. This is likely due to the larger number of factors it considers, providing a more nuanced understanding of an applicant's mortality risk.

Smart Score is also corrected for age and sex, minimising the impact of these variables on the final score. This ensures that the distribution of scores remains constant when updates are made, providing a consistent and reliable assessment tool.

It considers about 3 dozen different factors

Smart Score is a proprietary laboratory analysis methodology developed by CRL Labs. It is a transparent algorithm designed to improve mortality and is used in life insurance underwriting.

The Smart Score approach is based on a large and rich data set. CRL has data on over 15 million applicants, with up to 50 different laboratory values and body measurements for each individual. This data set is used to determine the most important factors influencing mortality and how they balance each other.

Smart Score considers about three dozen different factors, in contrast to the usual 3 or 4 used by knockout systems. These factors include physical activity and sedentary time, which have been found to be independent predictors of mortality risk. The algorithm also takes into account age and sex, correcting for these variables to minimize their impact on the overall score.

The Smart Score system breaks down the individual contribution of each factor to the overall score in a simple debit/credit scale familiar to life insurance professionals. This transparency allows for a better understanding of the results and can help make ''wiggle'' decisions on borderline cases.

The use of Smart Score in life insurance underwriting has been somewhat controversial, with some critics arguing that it may be used to unfairly decline applicants or offer higher rates. However, CRL has published evidence in peer-reviewed literature and industry journals demonstrating the effectiveness of Smart Score in predicting mortality risk.

It breaks down the individual contribution of each factor to the overall score

Smart Score is a CRL Lab's proprietary laboratory analysis methodology. It is a risk score based on several factors, including laboratory and biometric data, and is used in life insurance underwriting. The Smart Score approach considers about 3 dozen different factors, such as BMI, blood pressure, and cholesterol values, instead of the usual 3 or 4 used by knockout systems. This makes for a rich dataset that can determine which factors are most important and how they balance each other out.

Smart Score breaks down the individual contribution of each factor to the overall score in a simple debit/credit scale familiar to life insurance professionals. This transparency allows for a better understanding of how each factor influences the overall score and enables more informed decisions when evaluating insurance applications.

For instance, in the context of life insurance underwriting, physical activity data from activity monitors can be incorporated into Smart Score to assess an individual's mortality risk. Studies have shown that sedentary lifestyles are linked to higher risks of death. By including activity data, Smart Score can more accurately predict mortality rates, independent of other laboratory scores.

The breakdown of individual contributions to the overall Smart Score enables a more nuanced evaluation of an applicant's health and wellness. This can help insurance providers make more informed decisions and potentially offer more competitive rates that accurately reflect the individual's mortality risk.

It is not influenced by age or sex

Smart Score is a transparent algorithm used to determine an individual's life insurance eligibility and rates. It is a risk score based on several dozen factors, including laboratory values and body measurements, to determine eligibility and rates for life insurance. It is designed to improve on the traditional cut-off system, which uses specific thresholds of BMI, blood pressure, and cholesterol values to determine Preferred class eligibility.

Smart Score is unique in that it is not influenced by age or sex. While many laboratory tests vary with age and sex, Smart Score is corrected so that these differences are minimized. This means that age and sex are not factors that influence an individual's Smart Score, and thus their life insurance eligibility and rates. This is in contrast to other risk assessment tools, such as Risk IQ, which do take age and sex into account.

The use of Smart Score has been the subject of some debate within the insurance industry. Some have questioned its effectiveness, while others have praised its potential to make the insurance underwriting process more fair. CRL, the developer of Smart Score, has published numerous articles in peer-reviewed literature and industry journals demonstrating the effectiveness of Smart Score in predicting mortality risk.

The algorithm uses data from over 15 million applicants, with up to 50 different data points per individual, to determine eligibility and rates. This rich data set allows Smart Score to identify the most important factors influencing mortality and how they interact with each other. In studies comparing Smart Score to traditional cut-off systems, Smart Score has consistently performed better.

In conclusion, Smart Score is a powerful tool that has the potential to revolutionize the way life insurance eligibility and rates are determined. By minimizing the influence of age and sex, Smart Score takes a more holistic approach to risk assessment, considering a wide range of factors to make more informed decisions.

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