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Public Complaint Process

A formal complaint process is an essential complement to the verification and review of B Corp Certification.

As the party responsible for B Corp Certification, B Lab prioritizes responses to third party inquiries and complaints, which can help identify and take action in the event of misconduct or misrepresentation by Certified B Corps.

In many cases, there may be other mechanisms available for filing complaints or resolving disputes with a company, including direct communication, arbitration, working with regulatory bodies, or the legal system.

Complaints that B Lab will investigate:

  • Intentional misrepresentation of practices, policies or results in the certification process.
  • Failure to comply with the fundamental values of the Community of B Corps, according to the Declaration of Interdependence.

B Lab will investigate material, credible and specific claims against a Certified B Corp in one of these categories:

  • Intentional misrepresentation of alleged practices, policies or results during a company's certification process.
  • Failure to comply with the fundamental values of the Community of B Corporations, as expressed in our Declaration of Interdependence.

Complaints that B Lab will not investigate:

  • Customer service issues (e.g. returns or delayed shipments).
  • Cases in legal process or accusations without formal resolution.
  • Complaints not related to a Certified B Corp.
  • Complaints about practices not required for certification, unless the company claims to perform them.
  • Threats or accusations of illegal activities.

How to file a complaint

If your complaint meets these criteria, you can submit it to B Lab's Standards Management team using this form.

All complaints are confidential and contact information is requested for follow-up purposes only. The B Lab team will review the information provided and contact you. only if an initial review is necessary. He will seek your permission before contacting the company regarding the matter.

If the complaint falls within the parameters expressed above and no precedent has been established, B Lab will conduct a full investigation and present the results to its independent Standards Advisory Board. Investigations will require direct engagement with the B Corp in question to ensure the fairness of the proceedings.

B Lab does not comment on the details of complaints that are in process. A resolution may include a determination that a complaint does not fall within the parameters of the Public Complaint Process, as noted above.

*System B is not part of the Public Complaint Process, nor does it have any impact on B Lab's response times.

Complaint resolution

Issues that fall within the parameters of the public grievance process are resolved in one of the following five ways:

Revocation of certification

B Lab completes its investigation of the case and determines that the disclosure and remediation are insufficient to address the magnitude of the negative impact of B Corp's actions, and B Lab will revoke the company's certification.

1

Suspension of certification with remediation required to maintain certification

B Lab completes its investigation of the case and determines that the company's certification should be suspended until remediation steps are completed. B Corp will also be required to disclose the results of the case on its public B Corp profile. Until these steps are completed, the company will not be able to participate in the B Corp Community or use B Lab intellectual property, and its public B Corp profile will indicate that the company is suspended.

2

Probation of certification with disclosure and remediation necessary to maintain certification:

B Lab completes its investigation and determines that B Corp is on probation. To maintain its certification, it must complete the remediation steps by an agreed-upon date and disclose the findings on its public B Corp profile.

3

Certification is maintained with disclosure obligation, without corrective actions:

B Lab completes its investigation and determines that B Corp must disclose the results of the case on its public B Corp profile to maintain its certification.

4

The certification is maintained without any further action:

B Lab completes its investigation and determines that B Corp has not engaged in an intentional misrepresentation of the practices, policies or results alleged during its certification process, nor in a violation of the core values of the B Corp Community.

5

*Sistema B does not intervene in this process nor in the response times of B Lab.

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