New UK Homes Have To Have EV Chargers Starting 2022
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UK’s Charger Shortage
The UK wants to keep up and push towards the EV movement that seems to be a the forefront of every first world country right now. The USA recently set chargers alongside many of its roads, becoming a huge help for EV drivers. UK EV owners are wondering, when will the UK follow suit? Well the UK has a very different infrastructure to the US, each road getting a charger isn’t feasible so the Prime minister Boris Johnson is proposing to have all newly built homes in the UK to come with an EV charger.
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The Oversights
Unfortunately for Boris, many politicians were quick to point out the oversights with this approach. While the idea is not bad, and it will help the situation, but it will be a far cry from solving the outcry. New homes and businesses in the UK having chargers will help, but what about the stretches of road between towns. Whilst the US has far longer stretches between towns, the UK could really do with some of these charge stations on their longer routes. Following up with this, the current charging points are distributed very poorly, with some areas having a large amount of charging points, whilst the more rural areas are in dire need of chargers.
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The EV Situation In The UK
The final criticisms came in the form of questions. Mostly related to what the plans are to help encourage civilians to switch to EVs. Another question raised was what the plans are to help lower and middle income households even afford an expensive new EV. If people don’t make the switch to EV then all the charging stations will be a waste of government and national money. It would appear that whilst they are moving in the right direction, the entire project needs more time to be reviewed. More charging areas is a good start, but there’s a long way to go.
The Current State Of EV Charging
Not all homes in the UK have charging ports for electric cars, but it is becoming increasingly common for homes to have them installed. As the number of electric vehicles on UK roads continues to grow, more homeowners are opting to install charging ports in their homes to make it more convenient to charge their cars.
There are a few different types of EV chargers available for home use, including slow chargers, fast chargers, and rapid chargers. Slow chargers are the most basic type and are typically used to top up the battery of an electric car overnight. Fast chargers can charge a car’s battery in a few hours, while rapid chargers can provide an 80% charge in as little as 30 minutes.
In the UK, the government offers a grant of up to £350 towards the cost of installing a home charging point for electric vehicles. This grant is available to homeowners, tenants, and leaseholders who have off-street parking and who own or lease an eligible electric or plug-in hybrid vehicle.
Many electric vehicle owners in the UK choose to install a charging port at home for the convenience and cost savings it offers over using public charging stations. Having a charging port at home allows them to charge their car overnight, taking advantage of lower electricity rates, and ensuring that their vehicle is fully charged and ready to go in the morning.
Hopefully this new initiative to have more ports in new home will help increase the amount of readily available charging for homeowners who will be incentivised to take the EV option.
