Class Status Review Options

Overview

Classification Societies maintain information about the vessels they class and, where authorised by a vessel’s Flag Administration, the statutory certification and surveys they perform on the Administration’s behalf.

Some information may be available through a Classification Society’s website. Additional information may be contained in a Class Survey Status Report available to the vessel’s owners, managers or operators.

The scope, format and level of detail available online through each source can vary between Classification Societies.

RightShip offers two approaches to reviewing Class Status as part of dry bulk vessel vetting:

1. Online Class Status Review uses information available through Classification Society online systems and can reduce the need to wait for additional documentation.
2. Comprehensive Class Status Review uses a current Class Survey Status Report and provides access to additional Class and survey information where required.

Vet requesters can configure the level of Class Status review that best supports their operational requirements, risk exposure and tolerance, while maintaining RightShip's consistent vetting methodology and assessment standards.

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The role of Class Status Reviews in improving vetting efficiency

RightShip analysed 12 months of dry bulk vetting data from September 2025 to August 2026 to understand the impact of obtaining Class Survey Status Reports on vetting turnaround times.

More than half of completed dry bulk vets required a Class Survey Status Report to be obtained during the vetting process.

Where a report needed to be obtained, the average vet took approximately 19 hours, compared with approximately 2 hours where a current report was already available. On average, approximately 17 hours was spent waiting for the report alone.

Where sufficient information is already available through Classification Society online systems, Online Class Status Review removes the need to wait for a Class Survey Status Report before the review can proceed. This can significantly reduce the time required to complete the Class Status Review, from hours to minutes in many cases.

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Available Class Status Review options

Online Class Status Review: An Online Class Status Review uses information available through the vessel’s Classification Society online systems.

Depending on the Classification Society, this may include:

• Class certificate status and expiry dates
• Statutory certificate status and expiry dates
• Class survey status and due dates
• Statutory survey status and due dates
• Overdue Conditions of Class

As this information is generally readily available, an Online Class Status Review can often be completed without requiring additional documentation.

Comprehensive Class Status Review: A Comprehensive Class Status Review uses a current Class Survey Status Report issued by the vessel’s Classification Society.

Depending on the Classification Society and the scope of the report, it may contain additional information including:

• Conditions of Class
• Memoranda
• Outstanding recommendations or survey items
• Continuous Survey items
• Additional survey information or supporting detail

For RightShip vetting purposes, a submitted Class Survey Status Report should be no more than 30 days old, based on the date the report was generated by the Classification Society, unless a newer report is available.

Comparison of Online and Comprehensive Class Status Reviews

The scope, format and level of detail available through Classification Society online systems and Class Survey Status Reports can vary between Classification Societies.

Information or feature	Online Class Status	Comprehensive Class Status	What this means for the review
Class certificate status	Includes the class certificate status and expiry date.	Includes the class certificate status and expiry date.	Both sources may support verification of current class certification.
Statutory certificate status	Include statutory certificate status and expiry dates where the Classification Society is authorised by the vessel’s Flag Administration and publishes the information online.	Include statutory certificate status and expiry dates within the scope held by the Classification Society.	The amount of statutory information available depends on the authority delegated by the Flag Administration.
Class survey status	May show completed, due, approaching-due or overdue class surveys and relevant due dates.	Provides the recorded status and due dates of applicable class surveys.	Supports review of current and upcoming class survey requirements.
Statutory survey status	May show statutory survey status and due dates where the society carries out those surveys on behalf of the Flag Administration.	Include statutory survey status and due dates within the society’s delegated scope.	The absence of statutory information does not necessarily mean that a certificate or survey is invalid.
Conditions of Class	Statutory Conditions and Overdue Conditions may be Available	Available where applicable.	May provide information about Conditions, issue and due dates, outstanding actions, repairs or technical requirements.
Memoranda	Not Available.	Include memoranda recorded by the Classification Society.	Memoranda can provide additional technical or administrative context including action items and due dates.
Continuous Survey items	Not Available	Include current, outstanding or upcoming Continuous Survey items.	Provides visibility of individual items within an ongoing survey cycle.
Outstanding recommendations or survey items	Not Available	Include outstanding recommendations, observations or other survey items.	Helps identify items that may require follow-up even where certificates remain valid.
Survey history	Not Available	May provide a broader point-in-time view of completed outstanding and upcoming surveys.	Additional context may help understanding the vessel’s current survey position.
Point-in-time record	Information is viewed online and may change when the Classification Society updates its system.	The report represents the information recorded when it was generated or issued.	The two sources may reflect different update dates.
Availability	Readily available for IACS members	Subject to the vessel’s interests, owner, manager, operator, submitting the report to RightShip. Obtaining and submitting the document may take additional time.	Online information can often support an initial review, while a comprehensive report depends on document availability.
Consistency between societies	The content, terminology and level of detail vary.	The format and content of reports also vary.	Reviewers should assess the information available in the context of the issuing Classification Society.
Primary use	Provides readily accessible class, certificate and survey information for verification and review.	Provides a consolidated and more detailed record where such a report has been submitted.	Either source may contribute to the vetting review, depending on availability and the information required.

Question	Online information	Comprehensive report
Is the vessel currently classed?	Available	Available
Is the class certificate valid?	Available	Available
Are statutory certificates valid?	May be available, depending on Flag authorisation	Available
When are surveys due?	Available	Available
Are there Conditions of Class?	Not Available	Available
Are there Overdue Conditions of Class	Available	Available
Are there memoranda?	Not Available	Available where applicable
Is the information readily available?	Yes (IACS Members)	Depends on submission of the report to RightShip
Is the information identical across all Classification Societies?	No	No

 

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Configuring Class Status Review Preferences

Class Status Review preferences can be configured to reflect how an organisation wants RightShip to undertake its dry bulk vessel vetting reviews.

Preferences can be applied at three levels:

• Company level – a Class Status Review approach is applied as the organisation’s standard preference.
• Business unit level – a different approach can be applied to a particular business unit.
• Individual nomination level – the preferred review approach can be selected for a specific vet request.

This provides flexibility to apply different approaches within the same organisation. For example, Online Class Status Review may be used as the organisation’s standard approach, with Comprehensive Class Status Review applied to a particular business unit or individual nomination.

RightShip will default to online class status review unless, otherwise stated for specific customers.

To change your preference and configuration, reach out to RightShip at info@rightship.com with your configuration preference.

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Submitting an existing Class Survey Status Report

A current Class Survey Status Report can be uploaded by a vet requester as part of a vet submission.

Where a current report is already available to RightShip, it may be used to undertake a Comprehensive Class Status Review without waiting for the report to be obtained from the vessel’s interests. This allows the additional information contained within the report to be considered without introducing avoidable waiting time into the vetting process.

For RightShip vetting purposes, a submitted Class Survey Status Report should be no more than 30 days old from the date it was generated by the Classification Society.

When RightShip may perform a Comprehensive Class Status Review

RightShip retains the ability to perform a Comprehensive Class Status Review where additional information is required, including where Online Class Status Review has been selected.

A Comprehensive Class Status Review may be undertaken where:

• the vessel is classed by a non-IACS Classification Society;
• online Class information is not available;
• statutory certificate or survey information is not available;
• available online information is incomplete, unclear or inconsistent;
• a certificate, survey or Class status cannot be verified;
• a Condition of Class, recommendation, suspension, withdrawal or other concern is identified;
• there are other concerns relating to the vessel’s classification, certification, survey status or risk profile; or
• a current Class Survey Status Report has been proactively submitted and is available on the RightShip platform.

The availability of a Class Survey Status Report does not automatically determine the vetting outcome. Information contained within the report is considered as part of the wider vessel assessment.

Maintaining the rigour of RightShip’s vetting assessment

The Class Status Review is one component of RightShip’s wider vessel vetting assessment.

Online Class Status Review changes the source used to obtain relevant Class information where sufficient information is available. It does not remove RightShip’s ability to seek additional information or undertake a Comprehensive Class Status Review where this is required to support the assessment.

The wider vessel assessment and existing vetting criteria continue to apply irrespective of the Class Status Review option selected.

Availability and timing

Online Class information is generally readily available, subject to the Classification Society’s access requirements and system availability.

A Comprehensive Class Status Review is dependent on a current Class Survey Status Report being available to RightShip. Where a report is not already available, the vessel’s interests — such as the shipowner, manager or operator — may need to obtain and submit the document. This process may add time to the vetting process.

Where a current report has already been proactively uploaded to the RightShip platform, RightShip may use it as part of the Comprehensive Class Status Review.

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Guidance for shipowners and managers

Shipowners and managers are encouraged to proactively maintain their vessel’s latest Class Survey Status Report on the RightShip platform.

Maintaining a current report enables the latest available Class, certificate and survey information to be considered where a Comprehensive Class Status Review is required, without RightShip having to request the document during an active vet. This can help avoid unnecessary delays.

A Class Survey Status Report should be resubmitted:

• when a newer report becomes available;
• when there has been a material change to the vessel’s Class, certificate or survey status; or
• at least once every 30 days, even where there have been no changes, to ensure the information remains current.

For RightShip vetting purposes, a submitted Class Survey Status Report is considered current for up to 30 days from the report date.

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Understanding Class and statutory information

Class information

Class information relates to the vessel’s compliance with the technical rules of its Classification Society.

Class information may include:

• Class certificate status
• Class survey status and due dates
• Class notation
• Conditions of Class
• Recommendations or outstanding survey items
• Continuous Survey items
• Class suspension or withdrawal status

Statutory information

Statutory certificates and surveys relate to requirements administered by the vessel’s Flag State.

A Flag Administration may authorise a recognised Classification Society to carry out some or all statutory surveys and certification on its behalf. The statutory information available from a Classification Society therefore depends on the scope authorised by the vessel’s Flag Administration.

The Classification Society may hold:

• a broad range of statutory certificate and survey information;
• information for selected certificates only; or
• limited or no statutory information for a particular vessel.

The absence of statutory information from an online register should not, by itself, be interpreted as evidence that a certificate is invalid or that a survey has not been completed.