Calls for EV charging prices to be displayed
Thu, 11 Jul 2024
Prices at electric car chargers should be publically displayed just like petrol and diesel prices, the new Labour government is being urged.
Currently, prices only flash up on the charger display screen when the driver goes to plug in.
This means they are extremely easy to miss, meaning motorists may have no idea what price per kWh they’re paying, says the RAC.
As the number of electric cars on UK roads increases – along with the number of EV charge points – the RAC, along with pressure group FairCharge, is now urging the Government to start encouraging competition within the marketplace.
With rapid charging rates commonly reaching 80p per kWh or more – meaning the cost to charge even a small car such as Vauxhall Corsa could easily exceed £40 – the call is timely.
Some filling station networks, such as EG, already clearly show EV rates on roadside displays, sometimes alongside petrol and diesel prices.
The RAC says the prominent display of kilowatt per hour prices should now be a requirement of all public charging networks.
Other demands of the RAC and FairCharge Charging Charter include clear signposting for charger locations, so motorists don’t have to scour an area to find them.
Related to this, it also wants companies to consider charger safety, ending the practice of hiding chargepoints in dark, remote corners of a site – women in particular cite this as a real deterrent to EV motoring.
They are also calling for the VAT levied on public EV charging to be reduced, from 20% to 5%, in order to match the rate levied on domestic energy. This would ensure those without home charge facilities are not disadvantage.
The Charter has already been referenced and recommended to the previous Government by the House of Lords committee and the RAC wants the new Government to finally adopt it.
Other priorities the RAC is demanding of the new Labour government include better local roads, fairer fuel prices, a road safety reset, reducing the motor insurance tax burden and ensuring civil motoring offences are enforced fairly.
"If our six key priorities, all of which are supported by data and research with drivers, are implemented over the course of the next parliamentary term they will bring meaningful benefits for road users up and down the country," says RAC head of policy Simon Williams.
