Port and marina security: access, vessels, cargo
A marina or port area is protected when access to the pontoons is controlled, when there is a log for every vessel and every visitor, when night patrols cover the pontoons, the boatyard and the stores, and when moored boats and their equipment have specific measures. Private security works alongside the port authority, never in its place. Port facilities serving international shipping also fall under Regulation (EC) 725/2004 and the ISPS Code, which set their own framework.
Updated: 5 min readSources: 2
How do you control access to a marina’s pontoons?
Split the marina into zones — open waterfront, boatyard and stores, pontoons and floating jetties — and control every way onto the pontoons with a gate, a card or a person. Only owners, crews, staff and logged visitors go onto the pontoons.
- Pontoon gates: card- or code-locked and self-closing; no gate propped open.
- Cards: issued by name to owners and crews, and cancelled as soon as the berth contract ends.
- Vehicles: the boatyard, cranes and slipways are not a car park for passers-by.
- Contractors and suppliers: logged, with the purpose of the visit, which boat, and time out.
For the hardware — cards, codes, biometrics — see the guide to access control.
What vessel and visitor log should a marina keep?
A single log showing which boat is in which berth, who may board it, who came on and off the pontoons, and which arrivals and departures took place. Without it, a guard cannot tell whether the person aboard a boat has any reason to be there.
- Vessels: name, berth, owner or manager, authorised people, emergency contact.
- Movements: arrivals and departures with times, especially outside office hours.
- Visitors: name, which boat, who approved them, time in and out.
- Charter boats: who the charterers are and for how many days, as given by the boat’s manager.
A log is only worth something if it is updated when the movement happens — not from memory at the end of the shift.
What should night patrols in a marina or port cover?
The pontoons boat by boat, the boatyard, the stores and fuel, and the gates, on routes and times that vary, with a time stamp at every point. Night is when owners and staff are away.
- Pontoons: mooring lines, shore-power connections, open hatches, boats sitting low in the water.
- Boatyard: boats on cradles, engines and equipment in workshops, locked stores.
- Fuel: pumps locked, no movement out of hours.
- Seaward: small craft approaching the pontoons without lights are reported, not confronted alone.
Each checkpoint is scanned by NFC or QR, so the round is proven rather than claimed (checkpoint patrols).
How do you protect moored boats and their equipment?
With rules that apply to every owner — tenders and outboards secured, electronics locked, no keys in plain sight — and a guard who knows what normal looks like on each pontoon. The biggest exposure is whatever is easy to carry away.
- Small and valuable: outboards, tenders, navigation electronics, diving and fishing gear.
- Keys: kept at a controlled point with a hand-over book, not in a reception drawer.
- Owner briefing: what security checks and what stays the owner’s responsibility, written in the berth contract.
- Cargo: in port areas with loading and unloading, the cargo holding area has its own access control and logs every collection.
A guard does not board someone else’s boat. If something is wrong, they alert the owner, marina management and, where needed, the authorities.
How does marina security work with the port authority?
With a written contact list, an agreed way of reporting and clear limits: private security observes, records and alerts; the authorities’ powers stay with the authorities. Where the site is a regulated port facility, security works inside that facility’s own security framework.
Regulation (EC) 725/2004 aims to enhance the security of ships used in international trade and domestic shipping and of the associated port facilities against intentional unlawful acts (article 1). A port facility is the location where the ship/port interface takes place (article 2). For international shipping, the SOLAS special measures and Part A of the ISPS Code apply in full; for domestic shipping, Class A passenger ships and the port facilities serving them, plus other categories each Member State decides on after a risk assessment (article 3).
- Check in advance with the port authority whether your site, or part of it, falls under such a framework — that is not for the security company to decide.
- Contact list: harbour master, police, fire service, EKAB (emergency medical service), marina management, per shift.
- Reporting: what is reported at once and what goes in the daily report.
- Licences: the guard works for a company under Law 2518/1997 and holds a personal work licence, category A or B (article 3).
How should incidents in a marina or port be recorded?
As they happen, with the time, pontoon and berth, the boat, photos and who was alerted. A report with the boat’s name and berth is what the owner, the insurer and the authority need.
- Common incidents: equipment theft, a loose line or a boat taking on water, a stranger on a pontoon, fire or a fuel leak.
- Contents: time, pontoon and berth, boat, what was found, actions, who was alerted, photos.
- Owner: informed the way they agreed, even for a minor incident.
OVIT records rounds, incidents and actions on the phone with time stamps, and management sees patrols, incidents and reports in one live picture through the Guardly platform. A real person answers the operations desk. For the structure of a report, see the guide to the incident report. For your marina or port site, request a proposal.
At a glance
- Zones and a control at every way onto the pontoons; named cards cancelled when the berth contract ends.
- One log of vessels, movements and visitors, updated as each movement happens.
- Night patrols on pontoons, boatyard and fuel, time-stamped at checkpoints.
- The guard observes, records and alerts; they do not board others’ boats or stand in for the authorities.
- Port facilities serving international shipping fall under Regulation (EC) 725/2004 and the ISPS Code — ask the port authority whether that includes you.
Frequently asked questions
Does the ISPS Code apply to every marina?
Regulation (EC) 725/2004 applies the ISPS Code to port facilities serving ships in international trade, to domestic Class A passenger ships, and to other categories the Member State decides on. Whether your site is covered is confirmed by the port authority.
Can a marina guard go aboard a boat?
Not someone else’s boat. If they see something suspicious or dangerous, they alert the owner, marina management and, where needed, the authorities, and record the incident.
What is most at risk of theft in a marina?
Whatever is easy to carry: outboard engines, tenders, navigation electronics, and diving or fishing gear. That is why owners need rules and patrols need to go boat by boat.
Sources
Every legal or pay point in this guide was checked against the official sources below.
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