Third Party Auditor Certification Program

Important

Carrier Services will continue to ensure the auditor training information available below remains current. Any safety consultant or carrier safety officer who wants to learn more about the Assessment of Regulatory Compliance (ARC) audit program is encouraged to read and use this information.

In addition, for those who want to use the ARC program for their own purposes, we will endeavour to continue to answer technical questions about the application of the program to measure a carrier's regulatory compliance.

Contact Carrier Services for more information.

Overview

Alberta Transportation's Third Party Auditor Certification Program was created to meet the requirements for conducting commercial carrier safety fitness audits under the federal Motor Vehicle Transport Act and Alberta’s Traffic Safety Act.

ARC program

The ARC program consists of a course of study designed to help candidates conduct a National Safety Code (NSC) audit within Alberta. Information for the audit program can be found at Facility audits and investigations.

Successful candidates who complete this certification process will be able to conduct audits acceptable to Alberta Transportation for determining a carrier's Safety Fitness Rating and/or their eligibility for receiving permits or certificates.

ARC training program

To assist prospective individuals with learning how to use ARC, the Carrier Services Section of Alberta Transportation has developed this training program and is prepared to certify successful candidates so they can conduct ARC audits to an acceptable standard. A document on the training program is available at Third Party Auditor Certification Program.

To supplement this audit information, a summary of many of Alberta's regulatory requirements can be found in the Commercial Vehicle Safety Compliance in Alberta Manual. The audit program also requires auditors to be proficient with federal transport legislation, particularly that which deals with drivers' hours of service. Detailed information on this regulation is available at: Reference Guide for Hours of Service Training Development.

Program requirements

At a minimum, the auditor certification program requires potential candidates to:

• have a minimum grade 12 education or equivalent
• have a minimum of 5 years work experience in the transportation field
• have a good to excellent knowledge of applicable Alberta legislation before entering this auditor program
  • This knowledge can likely be obtained by:
    • having extensive involvement in the trucking and/or bussing industry at a management or transportation safety position
    • completing the transportation regulatory courses associated with the Commercial Vehicle Enforcement program offered at Lethbridge College
    • completing an equivalent course of study or work experience
• have access to and a working knowledge of computers and computer software
• be able to maintain business insurance
• successfully undergo a Police Information Check
• have a valid vehicle operator's licence with an acceptable Driver's Abstract
• have access to standard business equipment including:
  • laptop computer
  • printer
  • fax
  • etcetera
• be a Canadian citizen or landed immigrant

Interested candidates are required to complete the Transportation Third Party Application Form (PDF, 903 KB) and submit it to Carrier Services.

Qualification interview and exam

Once the application form is approved, the candidate will be asked to attend a qualification interview. A non-refundable application fee of $100 will be assessed upon successful completion of initial entrance exam and interview.

Successful candidates must be able to demonstrate that they have the required regulatory knowledge and appropriate skills necessary to interact with carrier management and staff at all levels. This is evaluated by passing the personal interview and by achieving an acceptable score on a 2-hour open book interview exam.

The exam consists of multiple choice questions on general NSC requirements and an analysis of a set of hours of service daily logs using Alberta and federal regulations. To achieve an acceptable score on this exam, candidates will require an excellent knowledge of transportation legislation applicable to Alberta carriers.

To assist prospective candidates with evaluating their level of knowledge in general NSC requirements and in the federal hours of service requirements, sample interview questions (PDF, 89 KB) have been prepared that are similar to those found on the interview exam.

These questions are considered to be at a basic knowledge level and anyone who has any difficulties answering them are recommended to take further training before considering applying for this certification program.

Successful candidates

Successful candidates will then be accepted into the certification program after all applicable fees and required documents have been received. A program registration fee of $500 will be required once the initial interview process is successfully completed. A receipt will be issued upon payment. Each participant will be asked to sign and to follow a Code of Conduct – Third Party Auditor Certification Program (PDF, 144 KB) prior to completing their certification.

Satisfactory completion of the self-taught program course material (including its quizzes and a 4-hour open book proctored final exam) is required in order to be eligible to begin to conduct audits. Several of these initial audits will be evaluated by departmental staff or other certified auditors.

Final certification can be received only when all criteria have been successfully met and the candidate has clearly demonstrated that they can conduct Alberta's NSC audit protocol to the required high standard. The candidate must also have the communication skills needed to interact with a commercial carrier's staff at all levels in the organization.

Once certified, auditors will be required to maintain their certification by completing occasional re-certification courses and by conducting the specified minimum number of audits each year.

Individuals who do not wish to obtain certification may access the course material at no cost.

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