Appeals & Complaints

5. PROCEDURE

RC has established appeals and complaint management system and follow steps as given:

Step No.	Activity	Responsible
1	Complaint or Appeal is received and register	Marketing Manager
2	Acknowledgement sent to complainant/appellant	Marketing Manager
3	Initial review by Scheme Department	Scheme Manager
4	Segregation and allocation of complaint	appeal and compliant Committee
5	General Complaint	SM/HR Manager will review
6	Review of evidence and decision making	appeal and compliant Committee
7a	If decision is favorable to complainant/appellant, action is taken	SM
7b	If not favorable, the original decision remains unchanged	Scheme Manager
8	Communication of Final decision to complainant / appellant	appeal and compliant Committee

Table 1- Appeals & Complaint process

5.1 Receipt and Registration

Appellants and complainants are required to submit their appeal or complaint in writing Complaint Form(RC-FR12-1) Appeal Form (RC-FR-12-3), through websites www.reliablecert.com, email (info@reliablecert.com), phone (+92 321 5995885) and postal mail (G-61, Zainab Tower, Model Town Link Road, Lahore, Pakistan) provided by Reliable Certifications (SMC-Private) Limited. A complainant can be generated within 30 Days of Reliable Certification decision.

5.2 Receipt Acknowledgement

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Upon receipt of an Appeal and complaint, Marketing Manager will acknowledge it in writing either by email or letter within minimum Three business days.
A unique reference number will be assigned to the complaint to facilitate tracking and follow-up throughout the resolution process.

5.3 Evaluation and Investigation:

5.3.1 Review:

Scheme Manager will initially review then forwarding to appeal and compliant Committee for review and evaluation of complaint and appeals. All other general complaints will be handled by Scheme Manager and HR manager related with internal complaints.

5.3.2 Investigation:

The Appeal and complaint are initially screened by the Scheme Manager to verify that it relates to certification activities, auditors, or decisions if do not fall within the scope of certification are redirected to the appropriate department.
The appeal and compliant Committee investigate Appeal and Complaints by using:
- Document review, interviews, and evidence collection
- Root cause analysis using 5 Whys by scheme manager if needed
- Site visit, record review
- Remote evaluation and verification which may be used for investigation where physical access is not feasible.
The internal complaint will investigate by SM/HR Manager by using above method and in case of disciplinary action along with consultation of HR.

5.3.3 Analysis of findings:

Appeal and compliant Committee assess the complaint to determine its issues, potential impacts, responsible person, and any corrective actions needed.

Timeline for investigation:

The investigation will be completed within 20 business days after receiving of the complaint related certification activities. Internal complaint of RC will handle within 3 days.

5.4 Initial Reporting:

The appeal and compliant committee draft a report outlining:

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The nature of the complaint.
Findings from the investigation.
Root cause analysis.
Corrective or preventive actions to be taken (if applicable).

5.5 Review and final approval

The investigation report for certification related and general complaint is reviewed and approved by Dierker Operation before final communication to the complainant/appellant.
If the decision favors the complainant/appellant:
- The Director Operation, in consultation with SM, implements corrective actions.
- Reliable Certification (SMC-Private) Limited has set following financial adjustment in case of any conflict:
  - The RC may give back advance payment to client in case cancellation of audit activity before audit
  - The RC will not return back the client payment after the audit perform.
  - However, RC may pay Manday and travelling charges to auditor and technical expert in case of cancellation of audit at site plus 20% of advance payment.
The decision issued by Reliable Certification (SMC-Private) Limited is final and is binding on both parties.

5.6 Communication to complainant:

RC will inform complainant about decision through email and WhatsApp.

5.7 Maintenance & retention of Record:

RC may retain records of complaint and appeal for the period of 3 years. All complaints and appeals are handled with strict confidentiality. Only authorized personnel have access to related information.

5.8 Escalation to Higher Authorities:

If the appellant or complainant is not satisfied with decision, they can escalate the matter to higher authorities within RC and relevant accreditation and regulatory bodies.