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Vehicle Legislation & Compliance Specialist

Contract: Until 31/01/2026 (likely to extend)
Hours: 35 per week
Location: Hybrid – 3 days onsite per week
Travel: Occasional international travel
IR35 Status: Outside IR35

Overview

We are seeking a highly skilled Vehicle Legislation & Compliance Specialist to join our client’s R&D division within the automotive sector.
This pivotal role bridges the gap between legislation and engineering, ensuring that new and amended vehicle regulations are clearly understood, accurately interpreted, and effectively implemented across all vehicle programmes.

You will act as the key liaison between central legislation experts and engineering teams, providing regulatory clarity, assessing the impact of upcoming legislative changes, and guiding engineers to achieve full compliance throughout the vehicle development lifecycle.

Key Responsibilities

• Serve as the primary point of contact for distributing and explaining relevant legislation to engineering and functional teams.
• Interpret and assess new or amended vehicle regulations to determine their impact on current and future projects.
• Consult and collaborate with internal experts and functional owners to ensure accurate application of legislative requirements.
• Develop and maintain Project-Specific Legislation Roadmaps (PSLRs), ensuring compliance activities align with project gateway milestones.
• Review and communicate guidance and updates from group or external legislative bodies, ensuring consistent interpretation and awareness across R&D.
• Work closely with engineers to evaluate product compliance, identifying any risks, design implications, or actions needed to maintain conformity.
• Support the creation, review, and distribution of regulatory documentation and formal compliance statements.
• Represent the department in cross-functional and brand-level working groups, sharing insights and supporting alignment on legislative topics.
• Maintain a strong network with industry bodies, legislative authorities, and technical experts to clarify requirements and resolve open points.

Key Skills & Experience

• Proven experience in automotive engineering, R&D, or compliance, with strong understanding of vehicle development lifecycles.
• Working knowledge of vehicle regulatory and homologation processes (e.g. UNECE, EU, UK, or GSR2 legislation).
• Ability to interpret complex technical regulations and translate them into actionable engineering requirements.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder-management skills, with confidence liaising across engineering, project, and compliance functions.
• Analytical and methodical, with the ability to identify risks, dependencies, and compliance impacts early in the project cycle.
• Experience collaborating with multi-brand or international engineering teams is highly desirable.

What You’ll Bring

• A structured, detail-driven approach with the ability to manage multiple compliance topics simultaneously.
• Strong technical understanding of vehicle systems and how legislation influences their design and validation.
• The ability to act as a trusted advisor to engineering teams, providing clear and authoritative guidance on legislative matters.

Please note: This role is deemed Outside of IR35 – you will be operating as a Limited Company Contractor.