A complaint filed against EIK Certificering of the Netherlands, alleging conflicts of interest was closed by that certification body without action, forcing Oxebridge to escalate the matter to Raad vor Accreditatie (RvA), the Dutch accreditation body.
The original complaint, filed in March of 2022, alleged that EIK Certificering violated ISO 17021-1 by simultaneously operating a consulting company, EIK Consultancy, ignoring requirements that the bodies have separate management. According to public websites published by the EIK companies, both have the same senior management, and the management of EIK Consultancy then work as auditors for EIK Certificering.
A source in the Netherlands reported to Oxebridge that it is a well-known secret that the two companies operate collectively, and that EIK Certificering certifies the clients of EIK Consultancy. The issue was reported by a whistleblower in that country.
ISO 17021-1 identifies potential threats to impartiality, saying:
Sources of threats to impartiality of the certification body can be based on ownership, governance, management, personnel, shared resources, finances, contracts, training, marketing and payment of a sales commission or other inducement for the referral of new clients, etc.
EIK responded to the complaint simply by saying RvA had previously approved the relationship, insisting the two companies are separate because they have separate business licenses. EIK did not address the problems raised by the EIK websites, which show shared senior management.
The issue has now been escalated to RvA directly, for investigation.
