How the ICI Score works
The ICI Score states what the documented information about a building's main systems supports about their physical condition, on a dated basis. Nobody visits the property.
Method status. Method 2.4, pre-ratification. It has not yet been externally reviewed, validated against outcomes, approved by any standards body or certified. Every result says so until the method is ratified.
Three things, kept separate
A score built from sparse records should not look as authoritative as one built from a complete record, and the weather where a building stands is not evidence about the building. So a result shows three things side by side, and only the first is the score.
ICI Score: physical condition
What documented evidence says about the condition of the main systems. This is the 0 to 100 score.
Evidence coverage
How much of the building is documented, shown beside every score as a percentage and as "x of y major systems documented". It never changes the score.
Your area
The recorded conditions around the building, measured separately by the Local Environmental Conditions Index. It never changes the score.
Not known
A system you have not described is listed as not known. It is never scored as zero and never treated as poor condition.
What shapes a system's score
Each main system (heating, cooling, hot water, electrical panel and roof) is scored from what is recorded about it, in this order of weight:
A recent professional observation
A dated inspection or service finding from the last five years carries the most weight. A clean inspection can lift an older system; a documented problem lowers it.
Recorded issues and their severity
An open significant issue holds a system below Fair. An open safety or not-working issue holds it in the lowest band and holds the whole score below Fair. A resolved issue does not lower anything.
Age against a typical service life
The installation year places a system in its governed typical life. Age alone can lower a score, but it can never put a system in the lowest band, and it is labelled "estimated from age".
What never lowers a score
Missing paperwork, missing service records, a system you are unsure about, and the conditions in your area. These are gaps in the record, not findings about the building.
The electrical panel has no governed service life, so it is scored only from a professional observation. A finding recorded before a system was replaced belongs to the old unit and is ignored. Where records disagree, the documented problem governs and the disagreement is listed with the result.
How the systems combine
The ICI Score is the average of the main systems that have a result, each weighted equally. Systems without a result are left out and listed, never counted as zero. Supplementary items, such as a garage door, are shown separately and never move the score.
An overall score is shown once at least two main systems, and at least half of the main systems the building has, have a result. Until then each system is shown on its own, with what would complete the picture.
Bands
| Band | Score | How it can be reached |
|---|---|---|
| Excellent | 85 to 100 | Records and observations support very good condition |
| Good | 70 to 84 | Records support good condition |
| Fair | 55 to 69 | Wear or age is part of the picture |
| Poor | 40 to 54 | A significant documented issue, or late in typical life |
| Documented problem | under 40 | Only a documented safety or not-working finding |
Evidence coverage
For each main system the building has, coverage counts four things: the type is identified, the installation year is known, a supporting or service record exists, and a recent professional observation is recorded. The percentage is the share of those that are present. Coverage of 75% or more is described as higher evidence, 45% to 74% as moderate, and under 45% as limited.
Good evidence does not mean good condition, and poor evidence does not mean poor condition. A well-documented system with a recorded fault scores low; an undocumented one is simply not known.
Versions, dates and history
Every result carries the method version, the as-of date, the evidence coverage, each system's result and what it rested on. A method changes only through a new numbered version, recorded on this page with its date; there is no silent update. Earlier results keep the version that produced them, and a result recalculated under a newer version is labelled as recalculated.
What it does not do
It is not an inspection, a certification, a code or compliance review, a safety assessment, an engineering opinion, a valuation, an insurance or lending measure, or a warranty. It does not predict failure or tell you when to replace anything. It reports what you enter, and does not verify it.
It is not an energy rating. It may sit alongside an approved energy evaluation and does not calculate, replace, update or certify one.
Known limitations
The values given to observations and issues are expert-judgement settings awaiting independent review and testing against documented outcomes. Observations are reported by the visitor; ICI does not receive or verify the document. Main systems are weighted equally because no defensible differential weighting is available yet. A roof with mixed materials has no governed rule and is listed as a gap. Fire suppression, elevators and life-safety systems are outside this product.
Regional weather, hazard and seasonal information may prompt attention, guidance or a request for evidence. It never changes the ICI Score.