EV charger grants & schemes
Charging your electric vehicle at home can be easy and affordable with help from an EV charger grant.
All you need to know about grants for EV chargers
Electric vehicles (EVs) are undoubtedly the future of transportation, offering a greener, more sustainable way to travel. But finding EV charging stations on the go can add stress to your journey. A home charging point, on the other hand, means you can keep your electric vehicle topped up and ready to go. It’s an essential investment for electric vehicle owners.
However, we also understand that the initial cost of installing an EV charger can seem a bit daunting. Fortunately, there are several EV charger grants and financial schemes available in the UK to help cover these costs. These schemes are a fantastic way to make your transition to an eco-friendly lifestyle more affordable.
Once you’ve found financial support for your EV charge point, it’s time to choose the right EV charger and installation service — and that’s where SpotDif comes in. Our handy price comparison tool lets you explore an array of EV charging options near you. We're committed to helping you find the perfect match by taking the guesswork out of the equation.
Read on to discover EV charging point and installation grant options available across the UK.
How much do home charging points for electric vehicles cost?
When looking to install a home charging point for your electric vehicle (EV), it's important to understand the costs involved. According to the RAC, a typical home EV charger installation usually hovers around £800. However, this cost can vary significantly. On the lower end, you might find options as affordable as £500, while premium setups can reach into the thousands. But what causes this price variation?
Type of charger
There are different types of chargers, like slow, fast, and rapid, each with varying prices. Faster chargers generally cost more.
Brand and features
Top brands and chargers with advanced features like app connectivity or smart charging capabilities often come with a higher price tag.
Installation complexity
The cost of installation can vary based on your home’s electrical setup and the charger's location. Complex installations requiring additional wiring or construction work can increase the overall cost.
Power output
Chargers with higher power output (measured in kW) are usually more expensive. These chargers can fill up your EV battery faster, but come at a premium.
Grants and incentives
Available grants, like the EV charger grant or government grants, can offset these costs, so it's worth exploring these options.
Can I get a grant for my home EV charging point?
All in all, a home EV charging point can be a great way to save money on your travel but there’s still the upfront cost to consider. Fortunately, the UK government has set up more than one grant for EV charger installation. In fact, there are schemes in place to help you charge your electrical vehicles, no matter your property type. There are even some financial incentives to help make EV chargepoints available in the workplace.
EV chargepoint grant for renters and flat owners
First up, the government has created an EV charger grant specifically for people who live in flats.
This grant is a fantastic opportunity to make owning an electric vehicle (EV) more affordable but also far more accessible, even if you don’t live on the ground floor. With this EV home charger grant, you can receive up to £350 or 75% off the cost of purchasing and installing a charging socket — whichever is lower.
As with any other EV charger grant, there are some eligibility criteria you need to meet. For example, you need to own an eligible vehicle and have a private off-street parking space. You can’t apply for this grant if you’ve already claimed under the Electric Vehicle Homecharge Scheme (EVHS) or the Domestic Recharge Scheme (more on these later). Additionally, if you're planning to move house or are in the process of moving, you won’t be able to receive this grant.
EV charge point and infrastructure grants for landlords
If you’re a landlord, you won’t be able to apply for the above EV charger grant but there is another option. You might be eligible for one or both of the government’s EV charging point grants designed for landlords.
The EV chargepoint grant is similar to the grant for flat tenants and owners — providing you with £350 or 75% off the cost to buy and install a socket, whichever is lowest. However, you’re not limited to one grant. You can get 200 grants for residential properties or 100 grants for commercial properties each financial year, and these can be across different properties or in one building.
Your second option is an EV infrastructure grant, that offers financial support to cover the cost of wider building and installation work that might be necessary to install multiple charge point sockets. This infrastructure grant can provide up to £30,000 or 75% off the cost of the work, and the amount you are eligible for depends on how many parking spaces the work covers.
Landlords can receive up to 30 infrastructure grants each financial year but each grant has to be used for a different property. If this sounds like a good option for you, take a look at the eligibility criteria for landlord EV charger grants.
EV charger grants and schemes for businesses and fleets
Are you interested in an EV charging point grant for your business or fleet? If the government grant for a domestic EV charger isn’t suitable for your needs, there are some other schemes to explore.
Workplace Charging Scheme
The Workplace Charging Scheme (WCS) is a brilliant opportunity for businesses, charities, and public sector organisations in the UK to join the electric vehicle (EV) revolution. It's a voucher-based scheme that offers a helping hand with the upfront costs of purchasing and installing EV chargepoints.
This particular EV charger grant is available in England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland but not in the Channel Islands or Isle of Man. The WCS is all about making it easier for workplaces to support sustainable transport.
Here's how it works: the grant can cover up to 75% of the total costs of both buying and installing these chargepoints. This includes VAT, but there's a limit of £350 per socket and a maximum of 40 sockets for each applicant. So, if you're looking to install chargepoints at multiple sites, say 40 different locations, you could get support for one socket at each site.
To tap into this scheme, you'll need to tick a few boxes. To start, you should be a registered business, charity, or public sector organisation. Plus, you need dedicated off-street parking, exclusively for your staff or fleet. Learn more about the Workplace Charging Scheme’s eligibility criteria to see if it could be a good option for you.
Think about it — this is a great way to show your commitment to the environment and make life easier for your EV-driving employees and visitors. It's a win for the planet and a win for your workplace!
At SpotDif, we're here to help you navigate this process. We can guide you through the WCS application and help you find the right charging solutions for your organisation. Let's work together to make your business a little greener. Ready to get started?
Electric vehicle infrastructure grant for staff and fleets
If you’re a small or medium-sized business looking to make EV charging points more accessible for your employees or fleet drivers, there’s another grant option available.
Available until March 2025, the electric vehicle infrastructure grant for staff and fleets offers financial assistance to help cover the costs of installing electric vehicle (EV) chargepoints in the workplace.
The grant covers 75% of the cost of the work, up to a maximum of £15,000 — this includes up to £350 per chargepoint socket installed and up to £500 per parking space enabled with supporting infrastructure. Impressively, you can receive up to five grants across five different sites.
To be eligible, your business should have no more than 249 employees and must be registered at Companies House or VAT registered with HMRC. You also need to meet some other criteria, too — see all the details on the government website.
Alternative EV charger funding options
Can’t find a grant that’s right for you? There are often new EV charger grants and schemes becoming available so it’s always good to keep an eye out on the government website — try the ‘find a grant’ tool.
However, if a grant still isn’t right for you, you may be able to get a flexible payment plan with your EV chargepoint provider. Some EV charging companies may allow you to pay for your electric vehicle charger installation over a set period of time, in manageable monthly installments. It’s always worth comparing EV charger providers and installers to find the best deal for you — remember, you can search and compare providers with SpotDif.
Previous EV charging point grants
As mentioned, there are often new government grants for EV charger installation becoming available. However, they don’t all stick around forever. There are a few grants that have been available in the past but have now closed.
It can be helpful to explore some of these historical EV grants to get a clearer idea of how incentives have grown and evolved. With this information, we can see what did and didn’t work and get an insight into potential future grants.
Electric Vehicle Homecharge Scheme (EVHS)
The Electric Vehicle Homecharge Scheme was run by the Office for Zero Emission Vehicles (OZEV) until March 2022. It offered the same amount of funding as the EV chargepoint grant for renters and flat owners (£350 or 75% of the EV charger purchase and installation cost).
The scheme specified similar eligibility criteria, and you also needed to prove you already had an eligible vehicle or had purchased one that would arrive within four months of getting your EV charger installed. Your vehicle also had to be on the residential chargepoint’s eligible vehicle list.
Domestic recharging scheme
Up until August 2014, you could apply for the domestic recharging scheme, an early grant designed to boost the adoption of electric vehicles in the UK. With this EV chargepoint scheme, you could get a grant covering up to 75% of the cost of installing your EV charger. The scheme was replaced by other initiatives to help homeowners and businesses install EV charging points easily and affordably.
How much does charging your electric vehicle at home cost?
Now you have an idea of EV charger installation costs and the grants available to help with that, let's talk about the ongoing cost of charging your EV at home. This is where the real savings come in. Home charging can be incredibly economical, costing as little as 3p per mile. This is significantly lower than the average 14p per mile on the go and about 18p per mile for rapid public charging stations.
Why such a difference? Home charging uses domestic electricity rates, which are typically lower than the commercial rates applied at public charging points. Plus, charging your EV during off-peak hours can lead to further savings, as electricity rates are often lower at night.
It’s also important to remember that EV charging tends to always be cheaper than filling up with petrol or diesel, too — you’ll usually be looking at around 19 - 21p per mile for these fuel types.
The benefits of a home EV charging point
So, we can see that a home EV charger can be a great way to save money on transportation, especially when you take grants and financial schemes into account.
But what other benefits can a home EV charging point bring?
Convenience
More and more public EV charging stations are emerging, making electric vehicles an increasingly viable transport choice. However, the infrastructure still isn’t quite in full swing, particularly in more rural areas. This can make it tricky to plan longer journeys in your electric car — and this is where a home EV charging point can make the world of difference.
When you have a charging point at your own home, convenience is at your doorstep. Imagine charging your electric vehicle (EV) overnight, just like your smartphone. You wake up each morning to a fully charged car, ready for the day's adventures or commute.
Safety
With a home EV charger, you charge in a familiar, secure environment. No need to worry about finding a charging station late at night or in less secure areas. Plus, the risk of damage to your vehicle from other cars is greatly reduced.
An increased property value
Moreover, a home charging point can contribute to increasing your property's value. As EVs become more prevalent, potential buyers will see this as a desirable feature. In fact, the National Association of Property Buyers (NAPB) estimates that an EV charger for a home may add £3,000 to £5,000 to the value of your house.
A lower carbon footprint
And let's not forget the environmental aspect. Charging your EV at home, particularly if you use green energy sources, reduces your carbon footprint. It's a step towards a more sustainable lifestyle.
Search and compare EV chargers with SpotDif
A home charger offers incredible benefits — it’s a convenient way to ensure your EV is always charged and ready to go, potentially at a lower cost per mile compared to public charging. It also enhances the safety of charging in a familiar, secure environment. Plus, investing in a home charger can even increase your property's value and significantly reduce your carbon footprint.
So if you’re ready to embrace an electric vehicle (EV) lifestyle, let SpotDif be your guide in finding the perfect home EV charger — whether you apply for an EV charging point grant or you’re planning on covering the cost yourself.
We’ll help you compare a wide range of EV chargers and installation services, ensuring you find a solution that aligns with your specific needs, budget, and the benefits you’re looking for. Start your journey towards a greener, more convenient future with SpotDif today.
Last updated on 16 Apr 2024