Commitment to Impartiality & Independence

Our Commitment

Impartiality is not a procedural requirement for Guardian VB — it is the basis of everything we do. Guardian Assessment Pvt. Ltd., operating as Guardian VB, is unconditionally committed to conducting all GHG Verification and Validation activities with independence, objectivity, and freedom from conflict of interest. Every verification statement we issue is the product of evidence-based professional judgement — free from influence by the client, by commercial considerations, or by any other interested party. Our conclusions reflect the facts as established by our verification work, nothing more and nothing less.

Guardian VB does not provide GHG consulting, advisory, or implementation services to any organisation that it verifies or intends to verify. We do not assist clients in preparing their GHG inventories, designing their reporting boundaries, selecting emission factors, or building their GHG accounting systems. This separation from consultancy is a permanent and non-negotiable condition of our accreditation and is applied without exception. It is enforced through our documented quality management system and is subject to ongoing oversight by the United Accreditation Foundation (UAF) as part of our accreditation obligations.

All personnel — including lead verifiers, team members, technical reviewers, and any external experts — are required to complete a formal Conflict of Interest (COI) Declaration before appointment to every engagement. This declaration covers financial interests, prior advisory relationships, personal associations, and any other factor that could impair or reasonably be perceived to impair impartiality. Where a declared conflict cannot be adequately mitigated, Guardian VB will decline the engagement. There are no exceptions to this policy.

Formal Impartiality Policy Statement

The following statement is issued by the Managing Director of Guardian Assessment Pvt. Ltd. on behalf of Guardian VB:

What This Means for Our Clients

Our commitment to impartiality has direct, practical implications for clients engaging Guardian VB for GHG Verification or Validation services:

• We will not accept an engagement where a conflict of interest exists and cannot be adequately managed — regardless of commercial value.
• We will not modify a verification conclusion based on client preference, commercial pressure, or the desire to obtain a particular outcome.
• We will raise and document all findings, including misstatements and non-conformities, as required by the applicable standards.
• We will not provide guidance on how to correct findings in a way that is inconsistent with our independent role.
• Our technical reviewer is always independent of the verification team that conducted the engagement.
• Our verification decision-maker is always independent of the personnel who performed the verification work.

Conflict of Interest Controls — Quick Reference