EV chargepoint regulations published

Charging network operators will have to deliver 99% reliability

New regulations designed to improve the experience of using public electric vehicle (EV) chargers have been laid before Parliament. Under the Public Charge Point Regulations 2023, the UK’s electric vehicle rapid charging network will be required to have a 99% reliability rate and offer realtime status updates.

The Public Charge Point Regulations are intended to improve the charging experience for EV owners. Ministers hope the new regulations, which were first announced before a public consultation last year, will eradicate range anxiety.

The regulations will also require 99% reliability for each chargepoint operator’s network of rapid charging points, measured as an annual average. Operators will be required to make information available so consumers can check whether a chargepoint is in use and working before they arrive.

All chargers will be required to produce real-time data on their status, offering greater information to potential users.

A 24/7 free-to-use staffed telephone helpline must also be offered for all public chargepoints to support consumers struggling to charge.

Charging firms will also be required to increase the availability of contactless payment systems. All new public chargers that are faster than 8kW must offer contactless payments, removing the need for drivers to use a smartphone app. In addition, firms will be required to allow customers to pay via a third-party provider.

Under the new regulations operators will have one year to ensure contactless payment is available with all chargers with a power of 8kW or more.

Payment roaming will be required within two years of the regulations coming into force, to enable drivers to use a single app or Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) card across multiple chargepoint networks, and chargepoint operators will have to ensure that they connect to at least one third party roaming provider.

To help consumers can easily make price comparisons, charging firms must also clearly display the cost of using a unit in pence per kilowatt hour either on the charger itself or through a separate device that can be accessed without a contract.

Under the new regulations, charging firms could be fined up to £10,000 for each unit that fails to comply with the requirements.

When the legislation was announced in 2022, the government also confirmed a £1.6bn investment in 300,000 new chargepoints across the country, which, would be five times as many traditional fuel pumps currently in operation. The government predicted these will be operational by 2030 and spread across the country.

Reactions

Ian Johnston, chief executive of Osprey Charging, and the head of chargepoint industry body Charge UK, welcomes the regulations. He said: “The public charging industry is committed to making the UK the best place to charge an EV. Consumer confidence in charging infrastructure is vital and we look forward to working with the government to implement these regs over the coming months.”

Mike Hawes, SMMT chief executive, said: “The announced measures to improve the UK’s EV charging experience will give everyone increased confidence in the network, something that is crucial to driving uptake and reducing emissions. The regulations’ focus on improving reliability, interoperability and pricing transparency is good news as they reflect the main issues people have when recharging.

“The next step should be enabling contactless credit or debit card payments at public chargers below 8kW, which would benefit drivers who rely on onstreet and destination chargers.”

RAC electric vehicles spokesman Simon Williams said: “We’re pleased to see the government has acknowledged there’s a need to improve drivers’ experience at public chargers and has now set out some clear actions to address this. This has the potential to reassure many more people that switching to an electric vehicle makes sense, which is vital the closer we get to 2030 when the sale of new petrol and diesel cars will end. Ensuring drivers only need to download and use a single app is a huge step forward from where we are today.

“We hope operators of rapid and ultrarapid charging hubs will not just clearly display pence per kilowatt hour prices on chargers themselves but also on prominent digital signage similar to fuel price ‘totems’ which drivers are already very familiar with. We believe this is needed to make price comparisons easy for everyday EV drivers looking to charge up as cheaply as possible on a journey.”