Image: DfT
The RAC has welcomed Government plans to ensure public charge points for electric vehicles have a 99% average reliability record.
Despite the growing popularity of electric vehicles (EVs), concerns remain about the availability and quality of the public charge points for drivers.
New draft legislation, published by the Government, has set out ways to make EV charge points more reliable, while having clearer pricing structures and easier payment systems in place.
It is hoped the move will make it easier for EV owners to plan their journeys and remove ‘range anxiety’ – and encourage more people to make the switch.
Simon Williams, RAC electric vehicles spokesman, 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.
“We hope operators of rapid and ultra-rapid 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.”
The Public Charge Point Regulations 2023 states that every year, EV charge point operators need to show the devices on their networks have a reliability average of almost 100%.
Should they fail, and then not suitable fix the issue, operators could face fines from £10,000 to £250,000.
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