Calls for limits on electric car charging rates

The Government must do more to keep the price of charging electric vehicles under control, particularly for those who can’t do so at home, or risk harming the chances of seeing more drivers switch en masse.  Data from RAC Charge Watch, shows it now costs an average of 70.32p per kilowatt hour to rapid charge on a pay-as-you-go basis, up from 44.55p (58%) last May and from 63.29p (11%) last September.

The rises, which the RAC says are driven by further increases in the wholesale cost of electricity, mean that drivers now pay £36 to charge a typical family-sized electric car. This is more than twice the cost of charging the same car at home, estimated to be just £17.87 – despite the record high domestic energy prices.

The RAC says those who use the rapid public charging network – typically because they need to recharge on a longer journey or because they can’t do so at home or work – currently pay a huge premium. It has expressed concern that these higher costs risk dissuading drivers from opting for EVs over keeping their existing petrol and diesel vehicles.

The RAC is calling on the Government to cut the VAT rate charged on electricity bought at public EV chargers from 20% to 5%, mirroring the rate domestic energy users pay. Doing so, it says, would see the cost of rapid charging falling by 8.79p per kilowatt hour (to 61.53p).