Crash Simulation Engineer Jobs in Chicago, IL (NOW HIRING)

The Role:
The Senior Accident Reconstructionist works with expert staff in reconstructing vehicular accidents and requires advanced experience in forensic accident reconstruction investigations. This role requires traveling to the site of vehicular accidents, assessing conditions leading to the accident, utilizing specialized software to reconstruct the accidents, working with forensic animators to develop 3D models and other graphics for trial exhibits, accurately analyzing crash patterns, and providing written conclusions to determine factors contributing to the accidents. The role also requires familiarity with providing litigation support services including legal depositions, working with attorneys, clients, and adjusters. Additionally, the ideal candidate has an established network of clientele (e.g. lawyers, insurance carriers, etc.) and is experienced with building, establishing, and maintaining rapport with this network.
The ideal candidate has an established network of clientele and is experienced with building, establishing, and maintaining rapport with this network.
This is a fully remote role open to candidates located anywhere in the United States. Candidates located in the listed states are encouraged to apply.
In This Role, You Will:

• Conduct accident investigations by traveling to and documenting accident scenes, downloading vehicle data recorders, performing analysis of accidents using crash simulation software, writing reports and providing litigation support services to clients.
• Initiate client contact and build rapport with insurance examiners, lawyers, and/or adjusters.
• Communicate with clientele regarding scope of work, investigation tasks, budget, and project completion timelines/deadlines.
• Provide expert testimony in depositions or trials as expert witness if/when requested.
• Perform vehicular investigations, including documenting crash scenes, using 3D laser scanners, photography, drones, CDR/EDR download, and measuring devices.
• Analyze vehicle crush patterns and conduct research (vehicle specifications, crash test data, maintenance history, etc.)
• Process 3D laser scan point cloud data using engineering workstation computers.
• Work with forensic animators to develop scaled 3D drawings of crash scenes and vehicles.
• Utilize PC Crash (or other similar collision reconstruction software) to perform simulations of automobile collisions.
• Utilize engineering principles and momentum equations to calculate factors such as impact and departure speeds, collision forces, trajectories of the vehicles, and other types of analysis.
• Compare calculations with crash test reports of similar collisions to correlate damages based on speed and velocity.
• Create reports detailing the accident reconstruction process and including findings and conclusions. Provides reports to clients to assist with determining the contributory factors of an accident.
• Research papers and journals related to vehicular accident reconstruction to advance the scientific techniques used in the reconstruction work.

What You Bring:

• 4+ years of experience in forensic accident reconstruction required
• Degree in Mechanical Engineering required
• Valid PE license, ACTAR certification, and/or SAE certification required
• Demonstrated experience calculating impact and departure speeds, collision forces, and trajectories
• Background in automotive engineering and automotive control systems
• Experience supporting insurance, legal, and claims clients
• Experience with computer simulations and CAD tools
• Prior deposition and courtroom testimony experience a plus
• Based in (or planning to relocate to) the job location
• Willingness to travel and work collaboratively in a team environment

Who We Are:
YA Group is an international professional services organization providing forensic consulting, engineering, risk mitigation, and related services. Founded over 25 years ago as a property damage consulting firm, YA has expanded through organic growth and strategic acquisitions. Today, YA has over 800 professionals dedicated to excellence, partnership, and driving innovation.
YA Group's Accident Reconstruction & Biomechanics team applies scientific investigation, engineering principles, and advanced technology to determine how collisions occur and why. Our experts bring extensive training and experience using sophisticated tools-including 3D modeling, vehicle and site inspections, Event Data Recorder downloads, and forensic animations-to analyze physical evidence and reconstruct events with clarity and accuracy. Capable of handling the full spectrum of motor vehicle accidents-from low-speed impacts to complex rollover events, heavy-truck collisions, autonomous vehicle incidents, and ADAS evaluations-our multidisciplinary specialists deliver analytically grounded findings that support clients across insurance, legal, corporate, and transportation sectors. In addition, our professionals are experienced in litigation support and are courtroom-qualified experts, providing clear, confident testimony to effectively communicate reconstruction results and technical conclusions.
We Offer:

• Employee-focused culture
• Strong commitment to work-life balance
• Remote work
• Flexible vacation & Paid holidays
• Paid family care/sick leave
• Parental leave
• Medical, Dental, Vision + more
• 401k w/match
• Career growth
• Competitive salaries + Bonus

Fraudulent Recruitment Alert:
Please be vigilant against fraudulent recruitment attempts. YA will never ask for personal financial information (such as bank account numbers or identification numbers) via social media or chat-based apps. We also will not request money for the purchase of business equipment, post job opportunities on Craigslist or conduct interviews solely via text message.
All official email communications regarding your application will come from notify@dayforce.com or directly from a member of our talent team using an @yagroup.com domain name.
If you suspect any fraudulent activity, please contact us directly at careers@yagroup.com.
Disclosures:
As part of our recruitment process, we may use AI-assisted tools to support candidate screening and evaluation. These tools are designed to assist-rather than replace-human decision-making, and all employment decisions are made by our recruiting team in accordance with applicable laws and our commitment to equal employment opportunity.
Where required by law, we will provide additional information about the use of these tools, including their purpose, and offer alternative processes or accommodations upon request.
Disclosures:
As part of our recruitment process, we may use AI-assisted tools to support candidate screening and evaluation. These tools are designed to assist-rather than replace-human decision-making, and all employment decisions are made by our recruiting team in accordance with applicable laws and our commitment to equal employment opportunity.
Where required by law, we will provide additional information about the use of these tools, including their purpose, and offer alternative processes or accommodations upon request.