marine cargo inspector
Marine cargo inspectors investigate all baggage and freight listed on the ship's manifest. They are responsible for checking the condition of the cargo and verifying the cargo's documentation and compliance with rules and regulations. Marine cargo inspectors analyse the vessels' capabilities, the fuel compartments, the safety equipment and the specific licenses required.
marine cargo inspector marine cargo inspectors investigate all baggage and freight listed on the ship's manifest. They are responsible for checking the condition of the cargo and verifying the cargo's documentation and compliance with rules and regulations. The role shows moderate AI exposure (0.50 on a 0-1 scale) — some tasks are being automated but the role adapts. The most in-demand skills for the role include types of cargo, international regulations for cargo handling, national regulations on handling cargo, freight transport methods, components of a ship manifest.
Pay in the UK
UK: median £38,963 a year for Inspectors of standards and regulations (ONS ASHE 2025, full-time)
Middle half of full-time jobs: £33,485 to £44,532 a year
UK jobs are grouped differently; this is the closest UK occupation group (ONS SOC 2020 3581). ONS rates this estimate reasonably precise. 2025 provisional figures; ONS revises them a year later. Source: ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (Open Government Licence)
Pay in India (occupation group)
Average monthly earnings of salaried employees in the occupation group “Technicians and associate professionals” in India, from the Government of India's Periodic Labour Force Survey (January–December 2025). It covers everyone in this group, not only marine cargo inspector, and it is not US pay converted to rupees.
Source: MoSPI (Government of India), Periodic Labour Force Survey Annual Report 2025, Table 51 — average wage/salary earnings of regular wage/salaried employees, NCO-2015 division 3. Official India data gives one average per occupation group: there are no official India figures for single careers, experience levels or cities. Read the report
Top skills
Knowledge you'll build
- Transportation
- English Language
- Customer and Personal Service
- Mathematics
- Public Safety and Security
- Administration and Management
- Mechanical
- Law and Government
What you'd actually do
- Prepare and submit reports after completion of freight shipments.
- Inspect shipments to ensure that freight is securely braced and blocked.
- Record details about freight conditions, handling of freight, and any problems encountered.
- Advise crews in techniques of stowing dangerous and heavy cargo.
- Observe loading of freight to ensure that crews comply with procedures.
- Recommend remedial procedures to correct any violations found during inspections.
Tools & technology you'd use
Frequently asked questions
What does marine cargo inspector do?
Marine cargo inspectors investigate all baggage and freight listed on the ship's manifest. They are responsible for checking the condition of the cargo and verifying the cargo's documentation and compliance with rules and regulations. Marine cargo inspectors analyse the vessels' capabilities, the fuel compartments, the safety equipment and the specific licenses required.
What skills does marine cargo inspector need?
The most in-demand skills for this role include types of cargo, international regulations for cargo handling, national regulations on handling cargo, freight transport methods, components of a ship manifest, hazardous freight regulations. These are the skills O*NET identifies as most important for competent performance.
Will AI replace marine cargo inspector?
Our AI-durability model gives marine cargo inspector a score of 0.50 on a 0-1 scale (higher = more exposure). That places it at moderate AI exposure — some tasks are being automated but the role adapts. Learning to work with AI tools rather than against them is the path forward.