Policy of Complaints/Appeals

Processing of complaints and appeals

In order to ensure impartiality and avoid discrimination in complaints and any appeal cases, Dovre Sertifising AS must ensure that personnel who are to make decisions in complaints and appeals act impartially in accordance with the requirements given in the standards and in accordance with Dovre Sertifising's guidelines and policy for impartiality.

The main rule is that there must be at least two parties who are impartial in the case. This means that they must not have participated or made decisions in the case that is being appealed. The group shall consist of the following members:

1. Competent employee in Dovre who is not a party to the case.
2. General manager (if he has not been involved previously)
3. Impartiality committee which is associated with Dovre Certification if necessary.

On receipt of written complaints, Dovre Sertifisering AS must confirm receipt of the complaint in writing. At the same time, it must be clarified which certifications the complaint is addressed against, either Insp 054, Prod 025 or MSYS 003. It must also be clarified whether the complaint covers matters other than complaints about the certification services, if this is the case,

The complainant shall be kept continuously updated as soon as a conclusion is reached. The conclusion must always contain why the complaint has been accepted or rejected. Dovre Sertifisering AS shall decide, together with the complainant, whether the processing and the outcome of the complaint should be made public or not.

Decisions that handlers of the case in Dovre Sertifisering AS make shall be approved by the general manager (if he has not been involved previously). In cases where everyone in the management is involved, the chairman of the board must approve the decision before it is communicated to the person who has complained and any interested parties.

Appeal process

If the complainant does not accept the rejection of the complaint, it can be appealed. In order for the appeal to be upheld, it must be directed at one of the areas for which Dovre Certification is accredited and conditions that can be directed at as a basis for the accreditation.

In order for the appeal to be processed impartially according to the requirements given in the accreditation standards, all appeals must be processed by personnel who are not employed by Dovre Sertifisering.

This is governed by 2 committees, one to process appeals directed against MSYS 003 and a committee directed against Prod 025. and Insp 054.

The general manager must be on the committee, but then only as an observer. The decision is taken only by the committee's independent members. The participants in the committee must be chosen on the basis of experience, knowledge and familiarity with the areas to which the appeal is directed. The participants are chosen for a period of 3 years. 

If there is no agreement and acceptance of the complaint and the appeal process, the case will be passed on to the courts - in general Stavanger District Court.

Contact

If you have questions or comments about the policy, contact us at Dovre Sertifisering through this form.