Certificate of Acceptance vs Certificate of Verification: What Is the Difference?
A certificate of acceptance (NRCA) records a functional test of commercial systems such as lighting or HVAC controls, often by the installer's own certified technician. A certificate of verification (CF3R in a house, LMCV or NRCV in larger buildings) records a diagnostic measurement by an independent ECC-Rater and is always registered with an ECC-Provider.
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Two questions, asked after the work is in
Acceptance asks whether a system behaves as required when someone exercises it, for example whether a daylight control dims the lights. Verification asks whether a measured quantity, such as duct leakage, meets the number promised on the certificate of compliance.
Who tests and who signs
- Acceptance. The field technician who performed the tests signs, and so does the responsible person in charge of the testing. For lighting controls and mechanical systems, the nonresidential manual says the technician must be certified through a CEC-approved acceptance test technician certification provider. Unlike an ECC-Rater, that technician need not be independent of the builder and often did the installation too.
- Verification. Only a certified ECC-Rater who performed or personally supervised the test may sign. Independence from the installer is the point of the role.
Where each one is filed
Verification certificates go to an ECC-Provider registry even on commercial projects, because nonresidential data registries may not register them. Where an approved nonresidential registry is in place, acceptance certificates go there, except those recorded by a technician certification provider.
Which name your building uses
- Single-family homes: the CF3R.
- Multifamily of three habitable stories or fewer: the LMCV.
- High-rise residential and commercial: the NRCV for verified measures, plus the NRCA for acceptance.
One test shows the split. The multifamily manual says duct leakage on a constant-volume single-zone unit may be verified by an ECC-Rater with sampling, recorded on LMCV-MCH-20-H up to three stories or NRCV-MCH-04-H from four, or done by a certified mechanical technician without sampling on NRCA-MCH-04-A.
If the correction note names the wrong one
For some high-rise measures the manual offers an acceptance form as an alternative to the verification form, so the approved plans decide. Ask the department for the form number and the test it refers to. Related: the CF3R, the NRCA, the NRCV, who performs acceptance testing, the residential form sequence. Project types: commercial and multifamily reports.
Common Title 24 Questions
- What is a CF1R certificate of compliance?
- What is a CF2R certificate of installation?
- What is a CF3R certificate of verification?
- What is an NRCC form?
- What is an NRCA certificate of acceptance?
- What is an LMCC form?
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, if the person is a qualified field technician or certified as the form requires. The nonresidential manual says acceptance technicians need not be independent of the builder.
The CF3R is the single-family form. Low-rise multifamily uses the LMCV. Taller residential and commercial buildings use the NRCV. All are registered with an ECC-Provider.
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