Impartiality Policy

IQ Cert's top management is committed to ensuring impartiality in all management system certification activities. IQ Cert understands the importance of impartiality, manages conflicts of interest and ensures the objectivity of its certification activities.

Certification decisions are based solely on the objective evidence of conformity or nonconformity obtained during the audit process and are not influenced by other interests or other parties.

IQ Cert continuously identifies, analyses, evaluates, treats, monitors and documents the risks to impartiality arising from its activities, from its relationships or from the relationships of its personnel. The sources of risk considered include self-interest, self-review, familiarity, intimidation and financial interests.

When a risk is identified, IQ Cert establishes measures to eliminate or minimise it. If a risk cannot be reduced to an acceptable level, we do not take on the activity concerned, or we discontinue it.

• IQ Cert does not offer or provide management system consultancy and does not perform internal audits for the organisations it certifies.
• IQ Cert does not certify the management system of an organisation that has received consultancy or internal audits from an entity with which IQ Cert has a relationship that threatens impartiality.
• IQ Cert does not certify the certification activities of another certification body.
• IQ Cert does not use, in the audit team or in the certification decision, persons who have provided consultancy to the audited organisation within the last 2 years.
• IQ Cert does not market its services as linked to the activities of a consultancy organisation and does not state or imply that certification would be simpler, easier or faster if a particular consultant were used.

The certification decision is taken by persons other than those who carried out the audit. Auditors do not review their own work and do not audit organisations by which they have been employed, or with which they have had contractual relationships, within the last 2 years.

All personnel, internal or external, as well as committee members, declare in writing any situation that could constitute a conflict of interest and undertake to comply with the impartiality, independence and confidentiality rules of IQ Cert.

The remuneration of personnel involved in audits and certification decisions does not depend on the outcome of the audit or on the number of certifications granted.

IQ Cert has an impartiality committee, with balanced participation of interested parties, which reviews the policies and principles relating to impartiality, counteracts any tendency to allow commercial considerations to affect the objectivity of certification, and provides advice on matters affecting confidence in certification.

The committee has access to all information necessary to fulfil its role and may refer matters to top management or, where appropriate, to the accreditation body, when it finds that its advice is not being followed.

IQ Cert personnel are required to report any commercial, financial or other pressure that could affect impartiality. Any identified threat is analysed by management and addressed through appropriate measures, including the replacement of personnel or the refusal of the contract.

This policy is communicated to all personnel, is publicly available and is reviewed periodically as part of the management review.