SIST EN ISO 15085:2024

Overview

EN ISO 15085:2024 - Small craft - Protection from falling overboard and means of reboarding (CEN adoption of ISO 15085:2024) specifies design, construction and strength requirements for onboard safety devices and arrangements intended to minimize the risk of persons falling overboard and to facilitate unaided reboarding from the water on small craft. The standard applies to prevention of falling overboard (not falls within the deck zone), includes toe straps for hiking-out, and excludes canoes, kayaks, personal watercraft (including powered surfboards) and trapeze systems.

Key topics and requirements

The standard addresses practical, testable requirements across the craft design and equipment lifecycle. Key technical topics include:

• General requirements and deck zoning (prevention strategies, defined deck zones and their specific needs).
• Slip-resistant surfaces and requirements for trampolines and nets to reduce slip-and-fall risk.
• Foot-stops (location, height, angle, continuity and gaps) to aid crew stability and controlled movement.
• Handholds (placement near outer deck edges and strength requirements) for secure grips during operations.
• Barriers to falling overboard (geometry, openings, height, specific sailing-boat provisions such as bow pulpits, transom barriers and multihull arrangements).
• Strength and design criteria for guard-rails, guard-lines, stanchions and barrier supports.
• Hooking points and attachment points for jack-lines (location, size and strength to secure safety tethers).
• Requirements for operation and storage temperatures of safety devices to ensure performance in expected environments.
• Special provisions for high-speed craft and additional handhold requirements.

The standard also contains clauses on documentation (owner’s manual information), conformity guidance, and an informative Annex ZA relating the standard to Directive 2013/53/EU (recreational craft).

Applications

EN ISO 15085:2024 is used to:

• Guide design and engineering of small craft to reduce man-overboard risk.
• Specify manufacturing and construction details for barriers, fittings and anti-slip surfaces.
• Inform type-approval, conformity assessment and compliance with EU recreational craft rules.
• Support safety audits, inspections and retrofits on existing vessels.
• Serve as a reference for testing, acceptance criteria and owner manuals.

Who should use this standard

• Naval architects, boat designers and small craft manufacturers
• Marine engineers and shipyards
• Certification bodies and safety inspectors
• Sailing schools, fleet operators and commercial small-boat operators
• Recreational boat owners planning upgrades or compliance checks

Related standards

• ISO/EN standards for small craft design and safety equipment and Directive 2013/53/EU (see Annex ZA for relationship to essential requirements).

Keywords: EN ISO 15085:2024, small craft safety, falling overboard, reboarding, barriers, jack-lines, handholds, slip-resistant surfaces, CEN, ISO.