Each client, project owner and third party may submit a complaint to the certification body about:
- complaints about the operation of COPRO;
- complaints about documents issued by COPRO;
- complaints about products or management systems approved or certified by COPRO.
Complaints must be confirmed in writing by the complainant and documented with the necessary information to enable the complaint to be investigated by COPRO.
When a written complaint is submitted to COPRO, its admissibility is assessed. A complaint is admissible if it relates to at least one of the aforementioned cases. The certification body shall inform the complainant in writing of the admissibility of the complaint.
If the complaint is admissible, COPRO examines the merits of the complaint, possibly after agreement with the complainant, the supplier and/or third parties concerning the investigation to be conducted.
Apart from these agreements, COPRO may conduct the investigation in whole or in part without prior information or the presence of the complainant and/or the supplier.
COPRO is authorized to conduct an investigation - or have it conducted - of the producer, distributor, importer and/or the place of delivery on the reported deficiencies or violations. This research can therefore be extended beyond the premises of the supplier and the production unit, if necessary, after obtaining the necessary authorisations from third parties.
If the investigation reveals an infringement of the rules or the non-conformity of the product or system without the supplier taking the appropriate measures, COPRO declares the complaint to be well-founded.
COPRO shall notify the complainant and the certificate holder in writing of the merits of the complaint and notify them of the results of the investigation.
In response to a well-founded complaint, COPRO may impose a sanction on the certificate holder, accompanied by various measures.
If it appears that a complaint is valid, COPRO can recover the cost of dealing with the complaint from the certificate holder. In the opposite case, the certification body can recover the cost from the complainant.
The costs of controls or investigations carried out by the complainant or any third party may not in any case be payable by the certification body.