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REI - Repair Effectiveness Index

How Repair Shops are Ranked in the Emissions Repair Guide

The purpose of scoring repair shops on emissions repairs is to:

  Simplify the selection of a competent repair facility for the motorist;
  Provide repair facilities with a self-evaluation tool to identify areas of weakness;
  Promote better and more cost-effective emissions reductions;
  Provide an incentive to the unregulated repair industry to accurately report emissions repair data.

How are repair scores calculated?

In calculating scores, the following four factors are taken into account:

  The number of vehicles submitted for retest by each repair facility (indicating a level of experience);
  The pass rate on the first retest by each repair facility (indicating successful repair on the first attempt;
  The number of additional retests required for a repaired vehicle to pass (indicating the need for multiple repair attempts by each facility);
  The number of waives issued to vehicles repaired by each repair facility (indicating unsuccessful repair attempts).

The repair facility is given credit for the vehicles that were repaired correctly the first time, passing the first retest. Demerits are assessed for multiple repairs (as evidenced by multiple retests), and for waivers issued. A score of 100 is a perfect score, indicating the facility properly repaired all vehicles on the first attempt. If a vehicle with multiple retests or a waiver was repaired at more than one repair facility, the demerits are apportioned to the proper repair facility.

Facilities that register to be in the Emissions Repair Guide are mailed a private monthly report card. A 3-month average score is used in the Guide, which is published quarterly with updated scores. New issues are distributed Feb. 1, May 1, Aug. 1, and Nov. 1.

Facilities that do not have enough repairs to formulate a numerical value will be shown as a single or double asterisk (* or **) in the score column of the Guide.

Shops that improve their record of emissions repairs are not penalized by the earlier data. The scoring equation weights repairs from the most recent quarter much more heavily (75%) than historical repair data (25%) in order to give a fairer picture of a shop's current work.

The back of the Vehicle Inspection Report (VIR) contains a form called the Vehicle Repair Report Form (VRRF). In order for a shop to get credit for its emissions repairs, it must fill out the VRRF, and the VRRF must be returned to the emissions center when the vehicle is retested. If this form is not returned to the emissions center, your repair data is not entered in the database. You must also put the correct phone number for your shop on the form. The paper records are sorted and filed by shop phone number. Customers are not required to return this form at the emissions center in order to obtain a retest. Therefore, it it up to you to make sure the customer does so. Many shops take the vehicle in for the retest before returning it to the customer. It's a way of guaranteeing the return of the VRRF.

If you really want to see the complex mathematical equation used for computing the Repair Effectiveness Index, contact the Mobile Sources Section, Air Pollution Control Division, Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment, at 303-692-3120.

What if you think your shop's score is wrong? Use the appeal process to correct your score. You have 10 days from receipt of your monthly report card to initiate the appeals process. Keep copies of all VRRFs you fill out, for use in appealing your score.

You are getting better!

When the process of ranking repair shops on their emissions repairs began in 1996, the overall average score for all shops was 74.8. It has steadily increased, and now stands at 84.5. This is concrete proof that repair technicians in the Denver-Boulder metro area have put in the effort to go through the learning curve on high-tech emissions repairs!

Information on calculating repair scores has been condensed from "Repair Effectiveness Index" of Registered Repair Facilities, May 1996, prepared by the Air Pollution Control Division, Mobile Sources Section, Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment.