Department of Transport

Principal Inspector of Marine Accidents

Reference number: 397086

Salary: £93,144

Contract: Permanent

Working pattern: Full time

Location: Southampton

About us

Based in Southampton, the Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) is an independent organisation within the Department for Transport and employs 34 specialist and administrative staff. We’re responsible for investigating accidents and incidents involving UK vessels anywhere in the world, and any vessels within UK territorial waters. The main focus of our work is to improve the safety of life at sea and the avoidance of accidents in the future, but we’re not responsible for apportioning blame or liability, and nor do we enforce laws or carry out prosecutions.

Your work with us

When you join us as a Principal Inspector of Marine Accidents, you’ll be responsible for leading, supervising and managing one of four multi-disciplinary teams of specialist inspectors that carry out investigations into marine accidents worldwide. You’ll also be a key member of our senior leadership team, work that will involve contributing to the formulation of policy and the running and development of the MAIB.

You’ll have a wide range of additional duties and responsibilities, including acting as duty coordinator and our initial point of contact for out of hours calls. This will involve operating within a 4-week duty cycle, triaging accident notifications and determining our response. You may be required to deploy to accident sites at short notice during your duty weeks, work that could involve worldwide travel, the management of demanding investigations and interacting with people and organisations in what can be challenging and stressful situations.

We’ll expect you to direct the progress, conduct and quality assurance of investigations, engage with stakeholders to develop effective safety recommendations, oversee the production, editing and quality control of investigation reports, and manage any related contracts. You should also be prepared to represent the MAIB at industry meetings and fora, and make a positive contribution to our wider management strategies.

Who we’re looking for

To be a success in this vital role you’ll have well developed senior management experience at sea or ashore, and the confidence and technical background necessary to enable you to tackle complex accident investigations involving all types of vessel. A confident project manager with the ability to plan and prioritise as you meet challenging timescales in a fast-moving, dynamic environment, you’ll also be able to assess and analyse data from various sources and recognise when you need to call in external expertise.

A inspirational and motivating leader, you’ll be skilled at giving clear directions and clarifying strategies and plans, while your excellent writing skills will see you producing logical and persuasive reports.

When it comes to qualifications, you should have STCW 95 A-II/2 (Deck) Unlimited or STCW III/2 (Engineering) Unlimited or a degree in naval architecture or a post graduate certificate or higher in marine accident investigation. Royal Navy equivalency is accepted, and we’ll also expect you to have experience in command or as the senior engineer afloat, as a senior manager in a role ashore, as a naval architect or as a marine accident investigator. In addition, you’ll be required to maintain a minimum level of fitness and undergo Counter Terrorist Check security clearance.

For more information about this role, please contact Andrew Moll at Andrew.moll@dft.gov.uk or +44 (0) 7880 724316

Apply before 11:55 pm on Sunday 15th June 2025