Electric cars are growing in popularity. They are already enabling zero emission motoring for a growing number of drivers in the UK.
Month on month, the statistics for new EV cars registered in the UK increases. It’s at around 5% at the moment, which is as almost 1 in 20. In less than a year this is expected to be as much as 1 in 10. The best electric cars are fun to drive, extremely quiet, have no harmful emissions and are cheap to run.
As battery technology improves, the distance electric vehicles (EVs) can go between charges is increasing. The UK’s charging infrastructure continues to expand and become more easily accessed which makes life easier. More and more public EV charge points are being installed and one day they will be as common (if not more so) than fuel stations.
However, convenience is so important for many people, so if you can charge at home, it might be the case that you rarely even have to use a public charging station and stop for “fuel” again.
Charging at home has never been easier.
Without a doubt, for those that have dedicated off street parking, charging from home is the most convenient and cost effective way to charge your EV.
There are many companies now offering home charging solutions so that you can charge in the garage or on the driveway overnight and hit the road with a full battery every day.
The cheapest and most convenient way to charge is to install a dedicated charging station. Whilst you can use a regular UK three-pin socket, it is much slower (a dedicated charging station charges 8 times faster) and may involve running charging cables from inside your home. Extension cables should not be used.
Unlike regular electricity sockets, a charging station is safer for your home and car's capacity. There are also solutions for drivers who share parking spaces e.g. in residential flats.
There are many kinds of charger available, including simple, low cost options to those with technology that interacts with your mobile phone so the driver can control the charging activity at their fingertips as well as monitor and record all their charging activity, data and history.
Let’s take a look at some of the options available:
Pod Point | Rolec | Wallbox | EVBox | Zappi | Tesla
Most of these are compatible with all plug in vehicle brands and come with a warranty.
On top of all this, OLEV (the Office for Low Emission Vehicles) offer a Homecharge scheme which covers up to 75% of the costs (capped at £500 inc VAT), and some energy companies offer tariffs specifically for EV drivers.
It is important that installation is by an accredited electrician who is an expert at installing EV chargepoints. We offer installation and maintenance of your chargepoint
