Assessment & Certification Terms
Last updated August 2026
These terms apply in addition to our Terms of Service and govern the TrustStanding Business Standing Certificate, the Customer Service Excellence Certificate, the Digital & AI Readiness Certificate and Business Identity Verification (each an "assessment" leading to a "certificate"). They are operated by International Awards Group Ltd.
1. Scope of an assessment
An assessment is a documentary review of the evidence and declarations you submit, scored against the published rubric for that certificate as at the date of submission. It is not an audit, an inspection, a financial or legal opinion, a credit assessment, or an accredited conformity assessment under ISO/IEC 17065 or a similar scheme, and it does not certify your products or services. A certificate reflects the standing evidenced at a point in time and must not be presented as a guarantee of quality, solvency, compliance or future performance.
2. Applicant representations
By submitting an assessment you represent that you are authorised to represent the applicant organisation; that all information, documents and figures you provide are true, complete, current and not misleading; that documents are unaltered originals or faithful copies; that you hold the rights needed to share them with us; and that you have disclosed any insolvency event, regulatory action, disqualification, unspent relevant conviction or material dispute affecting the organisation.
3. Evidence accuracy and verification
We may verify evidence against public registers, published filings, review data held on the platform and other reasonable sources. Where evidence is missing, illegible, unattributable or inconsistent, the relevant criterion scores zero. Fabricated, doctored or knowingly inaccurate evidence is a material breach: we may refuse the application, withdraw any certificate already issued, suspend or remove the listing, publish the withdrawal on the certificate verification page, and retain fees paid.
4. Our right to request clarification
We may ask for clarification, additional evidence or a short verification call at any point before or after a decision. Requests are sent to the contact email on the submission. If we receive no substantive response within 14 days, we may score the affected criteria as unevidenced and proceed to a decision, or close the submission as incomplete. Assessment timelines pause while a clarification request is outstanding.
5. Certification decisions
Decisions are made by the TrustStanding Assessment Board on the balance of the evidence submitted, and the Board's determination of the score, band and certificate validity is final subject to the appeals process below. A certificate is issued with a unique serial, an issue date and a validity period of 12 months from issue, and is authenticated through the QR-linked verification page. We may decline certification, or issue at a lower band than requested, without an obligation to certify. Fees pay for the assessment work, not for a particular outcome; declined or below-expectation outcomes are not refundable except as set out in our Refund Policy.
6. Appeals
You may appeal a decision, score or withdrawal within 21 days of being notified, by emailing support@truststanding.com with the certificate or submission reference, the specific criteria disputed and the grounds. Appeals are reviewed by someone who was not the deciding assessor. We acknowledge within 5 working days and aim to decide within 20 working days. Appeals are free once per assessment cycle; you may submit new or corrected evidence with an appeal. Where an appeal succeeds, we reissue the certificate with the corrected score at no charge. A certificate remains in its existing state during an appeal unless suspension is necessary to prevent public reliance on inaccurate information.
7. Complaints
Anyone — including customers, competitors and buyers relying on a certificate — may complain about a certified organisation or about our assessment conduct, using the same support address or our report and flag forms. We acknowledge within 5 working days, keep the complainant's identity confidential from the certified organisation where lawful and practicable, and may open a review of the certificate. Outcomes may include no action, a clarification request, corrective action within a stated period, suspension or withdrawal. Complaint records and decisions are retained for at least six years.
8. Suspension
We may suspend a certificate where a clarification or corrective action request is unanswered, where a credible complaint or new information calls the score into question, where surveillance is overdue, or where the certification marks are misused. Suspension is normally for up to 90 days, is recorded on the verification page as "suspended", and requires you to stop presenting the certificate as current until it is reinstated. If the cause is not resolved within the suspension period the certificate is withdrawn.
9. Withdrawal
We may withdraw a certificate for unresolved suspension, fabricated or materially inaccurate evidence, insolvency or cessation of the certified entity, a change that removes the basis for the score, serious or repeated mark misuse, or non-payment. On withdrawal the verification page shows the certificate as withdrawn with the effective date, and you must within 5 working days remove the certificate, badges, widgets, scores and any reference to current certification from your website, documents, proposals and marketing. You may also surrender a certificate voluntarily at any time; fees already paid are not refunded on withdrawal or surrender.
10. Material changes during the certification period
You must notify us within 30 days of any material change affecting the certified organisation or the evidence behind its score, including a change of legal entity, company number or registered office; a merger, acquisition or transfer of the business; insolvency or restructuring; a change of ownership or of directors; a significant change in headcount, turnover or scope of activity; loss of insurance, licences or accreditations relied on; new regulatory action or enforcement; or material changes to refund, guarantee, returns or data-protection practices. Certificates are issued to a named legal entity and are not transferable. We may re-score, request partial re-assessment, suspend or withdraw following a notified or discovered change.
11. Use of certification marks
While a certificate is valid you have a non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable licence to display the certificate, badge and score for the certified entity only. You must use the assets as supplied without alteration of the artwork, wording, score, band or dates; state the certificate type, serial and validity period where the mark is used in isolation; and keep any linked verification URL intact. You must not sub-license or allow use by group companies, subsidiaries, franchisees or resellers that are not themselves certified; imply accreditation, endorsement or approval by TrustStanding of your products, services or advice; apply the marks to products, packaging, test reports or calibration certificates; use the marks in a way that suggests certification of a scope wider than assessed; or continue use after expiry, suspension or withdrawal. Misuse entitles us to require immediate correction, publish a clarification, suspend or withdraw the certificate, and pursue our rights in trade marks and passing off.
12. Three-year cycle, annual fees and expiry
Certification runs on a three-year cycle. The assessment and certification fees are paid at the start of the cycle, and an annual maintenance fee is payable in years 2 and 3. In those years we may request limited evidence updates on a case-by-case basis so that any material change is reflected in your certificate. At the end of year 3 a full re-certification is required. We send reminders ahead of expiry to the contact email on the submission and show a countdown in your dashboard, and you may enable auto-renew so a pre-filled draft is created when payment is taken. If surveillance is not completed by the expiry date, the certificate lapses: the verification page shows it as expired, the badge is removed from your listing and widgets, and you must stop presenting it as current. A lapsed certificate may be reinstated on completion of surveillance within 90 days of expiry, retaining the original serial; after 90 days a full new assessment at the full fee is required and a new serial is issued. Missing surveillance twice in succession requires a full new assessment regardless of timing.
13. Confidentiality, records and publication
We treat submitted evidence as confidential and use it to assess, verify, maintain and defend the certification, and we retain successful submissions and decision records for at least six years so a certificate can be cited or re-checked later. Published information is limited to the certified entity name, certificate type, score, band, serial, issue and expiry dates, and current status including suspension or withdrawal.
14. Liability, changes and law
Certificates are provided for information only and third parties rely on them at their own risk. To the extent permitted by law, our total liability arising from an assessment or certificate is limited to the fees you paid for that assessment, and we exclude liability for lost profits, lost contracts or lost tender opportunities. Nothing limits liability that cannot lawfully be limited. We may update the rubrics and these terms; the version published at the date of your submission governs that assessment cycle. These terms are governed by the laws of England and Wales, and its courts have exclusive jurisdiction.