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Accuracy and reliability

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Population and Education, Social statistics.
Dorthe Larsen
+45 39 17 33 07

dla@dst.dk

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Deaths and life expectancy (Discontinued)

The statistics are based on the Central Population Register (CPR). The quality of the data is very high.

For approximately 5 per cent of the deaths the cause of death is missing. These people have often died abroad.

The statistics of death include the annual calculation of average life expectancy, compiled by Statistics Denmark. The average life expectancy indicates the average number of years a newborn is expected to live on the condition that current age-related death rates remain constant in the future. Life expectancy should therefore only be seen as an indicator of the current mortality of the population - not a prediction of how long newborns will live in practice because age-specific mortality generally decreases over time. The average life expectancy by municipality may however be subject to uncertainty - especially for the small municipalities.

Overall accuracy

The statistics are based on the Central Population Register (CPR). The quality of the data is very high.

Sampling error

Not relevant for these statistics.

Non-sampling error

Average life expectancy indicates the average number of years a newborn is expected to live on the condition that current age-related death rates remain constant in the future. Life expectancy should therefore only be seen as an indicator of the current mortality of the population - not a prediction of how long newborns will live in practice because age-specific mortality generally decreases over time.

The average life expectancy by municipalities is calculated for limited populations in the individual municipalities. The limited populations cause the mortality rates used to calculate life expectancy to become more sensitive to random fluctuations in mortality. Especially for municipalities where the limited population is small, it can cause fluctuations in average life expectancy, as the proportion of deaths in municipal populations may vary from year to year, due to random fluctuations in mortality. The average life expectancy at municipality level can therefore be subject to uncertainty - especially for the small municipalities.

Quality management

Statistics Denmark follows the recommendations on organisation and management of quality given in the Code of Practice for European Statistics (CoP) and the implementation guidelines given in the Quality Assurance Framework of the European Statistical System (QAF). A Working Group on Quality and a central quality assurance function have been established to continuously carry through control of products and processes.

Quality assurance

Statistics Denmark follows the principles in the Code of Practice for European Statistics (CoP) and uses the Quality Assurance Framework of the European Statistical System (QAF) for the implementation of the principles. This involves continuous decentralized and central control of products and processes based on documentation following international standards. The central quality assurance function reports to the Working Group on Quality. Reports include suggestions for improvement that are assessed, decided and subsequently implemented.

Quality assessment

The statistics are based on the Central Population Register (CPR). The quality of the data is very high.

For approximately 5 per cent of the deaths the cause of death is missing.

Data revision - policy

Statistics Denmark revises published figures in accordance with the Revision Policy for Statistics Denmark. The common procedures and principles of the Revision Policy are for some statistics supplemented by a specific revision practice.

Data revision practice

Not relevant for these statistics.