Glossary

Build

Also called BMI, body mass index.

Height and weight, usually expressed as body mass index, and a standard underwriting input.

Insurers ask for height and weight because build is one of the standard inputs to assessing mortality risk. It is commonly expressed as body mass index.

A figure outside an insurer’s accepted range routes an application to a human underwriter rather than ending it. Insurers set their own ranges, which are not always the general published bands.

Related terms

  • Underwriting The insurer's assessment of the risk you present, which decides the terms and the price.
  • Non-medical limit The most cover an insurer will issue on a declaration alone, without a medical examination.

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