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Container inspection checklist (7-point)
A 7-point inspection for shipping containers and trailers, before loading or on receipt. Scan the container number, record the type and check the safety approval plate. Check the undercarriage, doors inside and outside, both sides, the front wall, the ceiling and roof and the floor, with a detail box for each defect, and the fan housing on reefers. Confirm it is clean, dry and fit for the load, accept or reject it, record and check the seal, and get the driver's signature. Every question is listed below, and you can fill the live form in on this page.
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What are the 7 points of a container inspection?
The CTPAT minimum security criteria list the seven points as the front wall, left side, right side, floor, ceiling or roof, inside and outside doors including the locking mechanisms, and the outside and undercarriage. Refrigerated containers add an eighth point, the fan housing. The checks are made on empty containers before loading, to make sure the structure has not been changed to hide contraband and that there are no visible pests.
Last updated . Facts checked by the SiteSurvey team on 17 October 2026 against HSE: freight containers (safety approval plates and examination schemes) and US CBP: CTPAT minimum security criteria for importers, criteria 5.3 and seal verification.
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Every question in the container inspection template
A 7-point container and trailer inspection: container and seal numbers, safety approval plate, undercarriage, doors, sides, front wall, roof and floor, reefer fan housing, cleanliness, accept or reject, photos and sign-off. 3 sections and 41 questions. Follow-up questions and guidance appear only when an answer calls for them, so the person on site never sees the ones that do not apply.
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- Project: the project name
- Client: the project's customer
- Site: the site, when the form is opened for a space or a product
- Site address: the site address, from the space or the project
Container
- ProjectShort answerFills in from the project name
- ClientShort answerFills in from the project's customer
- Site*Short answerFills in from the site, when the form is opened for a space or a product
- Site addressShort answerFills in from the site address, from the space or the project
- Inspection date*Date
- TimeTime
- Inspector*Short answer
- WhenChoose one
- Before loading
- On receipt
- Return
- Container or trailer number*Short answer
- Scan the container numberScan a label: container number
Optional. Scan the label or tag to capture its numbers.
- TypeChoose one
- 20 ft dry
- 40 ft dry
- 40 ft high cube
- Reefer
- Trailer
- Other
- Safety approval plate fitted, with in-date examination details?Yes or No
- WarningHSE: freight containers must have a safety approval plate permanently fixed, showing the approval reference, identification number, maximum operating gross weight and examination arrangements, and must be examined under an approved scheme (ACEP or PES). Report a missing or out-of-date plate before the container is used. The duty comes from the International Convention for Safe Containers 1972 (CSC), applied in Great Britain by the Freight Containers (Safety Convention) Regulations 1984.Shown when “Safety approval plate fitted, with in-date examination details?” is No
- GuidanceThe US CTPAT minimum security criteria require a seven-point inspection of empty containers before loading: front wall, left side, right side, floor, ceiling or roof, inside and outside doors including the locks, and outside and undercarriage. Refrigerated containers add an eighth point, the fan housing. The checks look for changes made to hide contraband, and for visible pests.
Seven-point check
- Undercarriage and outsideChoose one
- OK
- Defect
- What is wrong?Short answerShown when “Undercarriage and outside” is “Defect”
- Doors, inside and outside (locks, hinges, bolts)Choose one
- OK
- Defect
- What is wrong?Short answerShown when “Doors, inside and outside (locks, hinges, bolts)” is “Defect”
- Right sideChoose one
- OK
- Defect
- What is wrong?Short answerShown when “Right side” is “Defect”
- Left sideChoose one
- OK
- Defect
- What is wrong?Short answerShown when “Left side” is “Defect”
- Front wallChoose one
- OK
- Defect
- What is wrong?Short answerShown when “Front wall” is “Defect”
- Ceiling and roofChoose one
- OK
- Defect
- What is wrong?Short answerShown when “Ceiling and roof” is “Defect”
- Floor (inside)Choose one
- OK
- Defect
- What is wrong?Short answerShown when “Floor (inside)” is “Defect”
- Reefer fan housingChoose one
- OK
- Defect
Shown when “Type” is “Reefer” - What is wrong?Short answerShown when “Reefer fan housing” is “Defect”
- Clean and fit for the load*Tick all that apply
- Dry
- Clean
- No odour
- No pests
- No holes or light coming in
- Points OKWorked out by the form
- Points with a defectWorked out by the form
- Photos (doors, inside, any defects)Photos
Result
- Result*Choose one
- Accepted
- Rejected
- Why rejectedShort answerShown when “Result” is “Rejected”
- Seal number applied or checkedShort answerShown when “Result” is “Accepted”
- Scan the sealScan a label: seal number
Optional. Scan the label or tag to capture its numbers.
- Seal checked: number matches the documents, and it does not pull or twist loose?Yes or NoShown when “Result” is “Accepted”
- Inspector name*Short answer
- SignatureSignature
- Driver nameShort answer
- Driver signatureSignature
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A completed container inspection report, made by SiteSurvey from a fictional site visit: every answer, the photos, the guidance that applied and the sign-off, ready to send as a PDF.
Container inspection FAQs
Where does the 7-point inspection come from?
It is set out in the minimum security criteria of CTPAT, the US Customs and Border Protection supply chain security programme, which require it on all empty containers before loading.
What is the safety approval plate?
HSE says freight containers must have a safety approval plate permanently fixed, showing the approval reference, identification number, maximum operating gross weight and examination arrangements, and be examined under an approved scheme (ACEP or PES). The form shows a warning if the plate is missing or out of date.
How is the seal checked?
CTPAT describes a view, verify, tug and twist check: look at the seal and locks, check the seal number against the documents, then pull and twist the seal to make sure it is fixed properly. The form records the seal number and whether it passed.
Can I scan the container and seal numbers?
Yes. Scan both on the SiteSurvey app so the numbers on the record match the container exactly. The inspector and driver both sign.
What makes a container unfit?
Damage, holes or light coming in, odour, pests, wet or dirty floors, or signs of tampering. Reject it and record why.
Who uses this?
Freight forwarders, hauliers, warehouses, ports, importers and exporters.
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