Certification Body Audit Markings
A non-conformance must be recorded whenever the Auditor discovers that the documented procedures are inadequate to prevent breaches of the Management System requirements, or they are adequate but are not being followed correctly.
Major Non-Conformance
Definition
A failure to implement or comply to one or more of the applicable control requirements, such that it raises significant doubts as to the adequacy of measures to comply with the requirements of the audit and / or represents an unacceptable risk as would be perceived by the systems stakeholders.
Example
These occur in the following circumstances:
- ongoing and systematic breaches of the requirements have been found.
Minor Non-Conformance
Definition
An isolated situation in which some aspect of an applicable control requirement has not been fulfilled, such that it raises some doubts as to the adequacy of measures to comply with the requirements of the audit and / or represents a minor risk as would be perceived by the systems stakeholders.
Example
These occur in the following circumstances:
- one off breaches of the requirements have been found usually caused by human error.
It should be noted however, that a number of Minor Non-conformances in the same area can be symptomatic of a system breakdown and could therefore be compounded into a Major Non-conformance.
Observation
In situations where the Auditor considers that potential non-conformant situations may arise or where a possible improvement can be identified an Observation may be issued. Organisations are free to identify corrective and preventive actions to Observations as they wish, but Auditors should take note of previous observations raised when performing their audits and look for signs of improvement.
Note 1: These can also be called 'Opportunities for Improvement.
Note 2: Some Certification Bodies may use different terms, but the meanings will be broadly similar. Exact definitions should be explained with their meanings at the opening meeting. If they are not, you should ask for definitions and explanations.