What Port State Control Checks on Decks
PSC inspectors arriving on vehicle carriers in 2026 have a different checklist than they did in 2022. Detention rates on RoRo tonnage are quietly climbing.
Port State Control regimes have not formally added new RoRo-specific items to the published checklists yet — but inspectors arriving on vehicle carriers are asking different questions in 2026 than they were two years ago, and the deficiency reports show it.
What is being checked
- Continuous monitoring coverage of enclosed vehicle spaces — not just fixed smoke detectors.
- Operability of CCTV on cargo decks (working cameras, recorded feed, retention).
- Crew familiarity with EV-specific response procedures and isolation gear.
- Records of any past thermal incidents and how they were logged.
Detention trends
Paris MoU and Tokyo MoU detention rates on PCTCs are still small in absolute terms, but the year-on-year change is the story. RoRo tonnage has moved from one of the lower-detention vessel types to one of the more closely watched ones in under three years.
Sources
- Paris MoU on Port State Control — Annual Reports 2023, 2024, 2025.
- Tokyo MoU — Annual Report on Port State Control 2024.
- USCG — Marine Information for Safety and Law Enforcement (MISLE), RoRo inspection records.
- DNV — PSC Performance Quarterly Updates.
- [VERIFY: Year-on-year detention deltas isolated to RoRo/PCTC segment — Paris/Tokyo MoU annual reports tabulate by deficiency category; per-segment trend requires custom extraction.]
Questions, answered
Has Port State Control changed what it checks on vehicle carriers?+
The published checklists have not formally added RoRo-specific items yet, but inspectors are asking different questions in 2026 than in 2022, and the deficiency reports reflect it. A PCTC considered well-found by 2022 standards may not be by 2026 standards.
What are PSC inspectors looking at on vehicle decks now?+
Continuous monitoring coverage of enclosed vehicle spaces beyond fixed smoke detectors, operability of cargo-deck CCTV including recording and retention, crew familiarity with EV-specific response procedures and isolation gear, and records of any past thermal incidents and how they were logged.
Are RoRo detention rates actually rising?+
Paris MoU and Tokyo MoU detention rates on PCTCs remain small in absolute terms, but the year-on-year change is the story. RoRo tonnage has moved from one of the lower-detention vessel types to one of the more closely watched in under three years.
Continue the thread
IMO Sub-Committee Outcomes for 2027
Late-2025 CCC sub-committee outcomes telegraph a regulatory floor for vehicle-deck monitoring. Operators that wait to retrofit will be behind a hard date.
How Insurance Pricing Is Reshaping RoRo
After the 2022 PCTC losses, hull and cargo underwriters moved from an EV surcharge to outright capacity withdrawal on some routes. The fleet must respond.