Risk assessment in ships and boats

Risk assessment in ships and boats

A risk assessment involves assessing the risks that pose to the safety of people on board. It is a systematic examination of all aspects of work. These include:

• What may cause injury or damage?

• What risks can be prevented? - and if not;

• What preventive measures need to be in place to control the risk?

To ensure the best possible safety of employees, it is mandatory for the employer to carry out a special risk assessment so that preventive measures can be taken. This applies no less to situations on board boats and ships.

How do I carry out a risk assessment?

Many ships and boats today have on board safety management systems that are in fact and truly equivalent to a risk assessment. These ships are considered to meet the requirements of the regulation upon inspection.

Boats under 15 meters can use the Agga app, which allows a sailor to carry out a simple risk assessment on board their boat or ship. The condition is that he has the application installed on his phone or computer on board. Agga is free of charge and is accessible at https://www.agga.is/.

Larger ships that do not have a safety management system and/or a defined risk assessment system on board can use a form that inspectors can provide and is also accessible here.

Such a completed form is considered valid as a risk assessment during an inspection. Furthermore, instructions for risk assessment are in the same document.

What happens during an inspection?

From 1 January 2026, ship inspectors will make a comment if a risk assessment has not been carried out on board ships during a regular inspection. This is done by referring to Regulation No. 200/2007, which states in Article 8. that the employer must have a risk assessment regarding safety and health at work, including the risks posed to specific groups of workers.

In 2026 and 2027, a level 1 inspection will be carried out if a risk assessment is not available. This means that there is a requirement to rectify the inspection issue within a month, but no review is required.

From 2028, a level 2 inspection will be carried out if a risk assessment is not available. This means that the ship does not pass the inspection and a review is required within a specified period, up to three months, and the inspection issue must be rectified before the review.