FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

This section covers some of the FAQ's for potential and new owners want to know about EV's. If you have a question that is not covered below then drop us a line and we'll respond with an answer.

Q.     How to charge your vehicle? 

Your EV can be charged in multiple ways and different chargers, in general pretty much all new EV cars will use the Type 2 Connectors to charge your EV this is now becoming the standard (thank goodness!). If you do have a different connector, the charge point will stipulate whether you are able to charge your EV there. 

Q.     What Government Incentives are there?

Current incentives for purchasing a full EV car is £3500 off the list price for new vehicle in addition to this if you choose to have a charge point installed at home then you will receive a further £500 off the installation of an approved ‘Smart Charger’. All of this is subject to change in the coming months… so watch this space

Please note as of the 2020 Budget the government has reduced the grant to £3000 for EV's up to £50,000.

Q.      How long does it take to charge your EV?

This largely depends on the size of the battery your EV will have, the larger the battery the longer it will take to charge. In addition to this it will also depend on what type of chager you are plugging into, the higher the KW/h of the charge station the quicker your EV will charge.

So for example if your EV has a 50KW battery the charge station you are plugging into is 170KW/H then it will take 17.5mins to fully charge (50/170).

Q.    When will Petrol and Diesel cars stop being sold in the UK?

The UK government has recently announced that the ban on sales of new Petrol and Diesel cars is to be brought forward by 5 years from 2040 to 2035 this has now also been extended to Hybrid vehicles.

A recent report has cited this may even be brought further forward to 2032 but this has not been confimred.

Q.     How much does it cost to charge my car?

This generally depends on the size of the battery, the larger the battery then then the longer the EV takes to charge and hence the more it costs however this is always significantly less than a diesel or petrol car. 

For example: If you have an EV with a 50KW battery and you pay 15p KW/h then the cost to charge the battery would be 50x15p = £7.50p. This would typically last you around 230-240 miles (depending on your driving style and the particular EV)

Q.      How much maintenance does my charge point need?

Charge Points once installed are usually self sufficient, most of the newer models tend to connect to your home WiFi and provide updates over the air. If there is an issue with the Charge Point then you will need to contact your charge point provider.

Q.      Is it cheaper to run an electric cars over a traditional car?

Overall it is cheaper to run an EV over an ICE car, a quick summary is shown below:

Fuel 3-5p a mile compared to 12-30p a mile

Insurance - expect to pay more to insure your EV over an ICE car

Maintenance - There are fewer services with an EV vehicle however expect to pay more for tyres.due to the weight of the EV.

Q.      Where can I charge my EV if I live in a flat  or have no private drive/offstreet parking?

Currently you will be unable to install a charge point in your house (and obviously a flat) if you do not have offstreet parking, it is a pre-requisite for an installation and therefore a challenge for those that want to own an EV who live in these dwellings. The government is looking for ways to make charging more accessible in these particular types of homes. Some of the ways to get around this for the short term is to:

 - Map out where your charge points are and how accesible they are

 - Check to see if your local petrol station has installed electric charge points 

Q.      Where can I charge my EV around the UK or Europe?

There are charge points popping up nearly everyday in around the UK and Europe. It is quite easy to map out a route from one end of the UK to the other without worrying if you can make it all the way in an EV. Indeed this is also true for Europe. There are several apps that will show you all the Charge Points around you, a couple that we have used are 'ZapMap' and 'PlugShare' both provide the various different manufacturers and more importantly if they are working. If you are looking specifically for a particular supplier, say for example if you download the Pod Point app it will show where the Charge Points are but in addition it will tell you if they are busy or even if they are no longer working and how much you would need to pay to charge your EV.