Electric cars are here, and they’re here to stay. Before too long, they’re likely to dominate our roads – new petrol and diesel cars won’t be available to buy after 2035, after all. Whether you’ve already joined the zero-emission revolution or are planning to buy your first electric car this year, in order to fully take advantage of the car’s capabilities, you’ll need a home charger.
In this comprehensive guide, we’re going to tell you everything you need to know about home charger installations. How much do they cost? Where and how are they installed? Who can install them? Are there any Government grants available to help towards the cost? We’ll be answering all of these questions and more below.
The Cost of Installing an Electric Car Charging Point
Let’s not waste any time: how much does it cost to install a charging point at home? As you might expect, installation costs can vary significantly depending on a variety of factors. The make and model of the charging point, your chosen supplier and the complexity of the installation itself will all impact the amount you pay, so you’ll need to shop around and weigh up your options if you want to get a good deal.
For example, 3kW chargers tend to start at under £400, while more powerful 7kW alternatives can come in at double that. Then there’s the cost of the installation to consider which, depending on the location you choose and the configuration of your home’s wiring, could easily send the total bill north of £1,000. According to price comparison site Checkatrade, complete charger installations typically cost around £1,000, with simpler installations starting at around £800 and more complex jobs adding up to £1,500 or more. These prices include both the cost of the charger and the installation.
Keep in mind that these are only ballpark figures: the only way you’ll find out exactly how much your installation is going to cost is by getting a quote. We would recommend getting quotes from at least two different installation companies, just to make sure you’re not paying over the odds.
Are There Any Government Grants Available to Help Cover the Costs?
There were grants available to homeowners, but these sadly came to an end in 2022. Back then, you could receive up to £350 towards the cost of your charger installation – but unless you’ve got Doc Brown’s DeLorean sat in your garage, you’ve missed your chance.
It’s not all bad news, though. Landlords and flat residents can now take advantage of the EV Chargepoint Grant, which became available on 1 April 2022. Like the earlier scheme, it offers up to £350 towards the cost of a charging point installation – but there is a catch. In order to take advantage of the scheme, your property must have off-street parking.
Meanwhile, business owners can take advantage of the Workplace Charging Scheme for Electric Vehicles. Much like the others, this scheme offers businesses up to £350 towards the cost of an electric charger – but instead of covering just one charging point, it covers up to 40.
Which Factors Affect Installation Costs?
As we touched on before, there are a number of different factors that can significantly affect the cost of your chargepoint installation. These include:
- The make and model of chargepoint you opt for. Not only do the units themselves vary in cost significantly, but some are more finicky to install than others. This is why we’d recommend speaking to chargepoint installation specialists who really know their stuff (as opposed to enlisting the services of a more generalised electrical engineer).
- The way your house is built. Holes will need to be drilled in your home to fit the charger and run cables, and thicker stone walls will make this process more time-consuming (and more expensive).
- The configuration of your home’s electrical system. Older homes naturally weren’t built with electric car charging in mind, so elements of their electrical system may need to be beefed up to reliably output the required power and comply with modern safety regulations. The location of your home’s electricity meter can also push up costs; the further away it is from the charger, the more expensive the project becomes.
- The company you choose to carry out the installation. More experienced specialists may be able to complete the project in less time, keeping labour costs down and keeping delays and complications to a minimum.
Do I Even Need a Charging Point?
We get it: the prospect of shelling out upwards of a grand for a chargepoint isn’t a particularly enticing one. But just try owning an electric car without one – you’ll soon realise how crucial they are. To save you the bother, here are a few alarming points that put everything into perspective:
- Charging your EV with a standard, three-pin power supply will take forever. Say you drive something like a Tesla Model S with a 100kWh battery pack. If you plug it into the mains and try to fully charge it, you’ll be waiting the best part of two days. Home chargers can supply a whole lot more juice, allowing them to fully charge the same car in a fraction of the time (around 14 hours).
- Charging with a three-pin supply isn’t particularly safe, either. Regular sockets simply aren’t designed to charge cars, so using a dedicated charging point will help keep you, your vehicle and your home safe.
- If you own your EV for long enough, a home charger will eventually pay for itself. Shop around for an EV-specific electricity tariff and charge off-peak, and you could enjoy rates of less than 10p per kWh. Public charging points are usually more than seven times more expensive than this – so if you do enough miles, a home charger will make real financial sense.
- You can’t beat the convenience of a home charger. Provided you plug your car in when you get home, you can expect to wake up to a fully charged car the next morning. How handy is that?
When you add the hit-or-miss availability and rising cost of public charging points into the mix, the answer to this question becomes crystal clear: if you want to enjoy your electric car and take full advantage of its capabilities, a home charging point is a must-have.
There’s an added bonus to having a charging point fitted, too: it could increase the value of your home, or at least make it easier to sell.
Can I Get an Electric Car Charger Installed?
So, you’ve decided you need a home charger – but can you actually get one installed? There are several restrictions in place that limit which properties can be fitted with home chargers, so before you ring around for quotes, make sure your home meets the following criteria:
- It must have off-street parking. This is perhaps the single biggest issue faced by city-dwelling EV owners right now; without a driveway or off-street parking space, there’s simply no way to get a home charger fitted. Ideally, your parking space should be as close as possible to your home’s electricity meter to keep the installation cost down.
- If you rent, you’ll need your landlord’s permission to get a charger fitted.
- To take full advantage of your charger’s features and to control its operation remotely, you’ll need a WiFi connection and a smartphone.
- Your home’s electrical system will need to be up to scratch. If you live in an older property, additional work may be needed to carry out the installation to the required standard, so bear this in mind.
The Chargepoint Installation Process
Installing a home charger isn’t a quick job. Fitting the charger actually only takes a few hours, but it’s the paperwork required beforehand that adds complexity to the process. A wide variety of different checks have to be carried out and approvals granted before any work can be done, so it may take more than a month from initial enquiry to completion.
To give you an idea of what to expect, here’s an overview of how the process typically works.
- To begin with, you’ll need to find a local installer with the required qualifications to carry out the work. Charge point installations can be quite complex, so we’d always recommend speaking to specialists who have completed similar projects before.
- After you make your initial enquiry, the installer will need to visit your premises or arrange a video call with you to understand your requirements. They’ll likely ask to see your parking space, electricity meter and desired installation spot, just to get an idea of the work that’s required. They will also want to know which vehicle you drive so they can recommend a suitable charger.
- Once you’ve talked through your options, you can book the installation at a time convenient for you. Make sure you’re free or are able to work from home when your installation is carried out.
- In the meantime, your installer will complete all of the relevant paperwork, carry out safety checks and secure approval from your local grid operator.
- The installation will be carried out. You’re good to go!
Choosing a Suitable Charger for Your Car
There are hundreds of different charging points on the market nowadays, so choosing one that’s right for you can seem like a tall order. Any chargepoint specialist worth their salt should be able to point you in the right direction, but here are a few key considerations to keep in mind.
- Price: Chargers can vary in price significantly, and some might have features you simply don’t want or need.
- Power output: You can get 3 or 7kW home chargers, the latter being more powerful and thus able to charge your car more rapidly. As a result, 7kW models are fast becoming the default choice.
- Features: Modern chargepoints boast a whole host of different features, from compatibility with other smart devices to energy-saving technology, security measures and more. You can also invest in all kinds of different accessories, including longer charging cables.
- Smart charging: Smart chargers used to be optional, but as of December 2022, all home chargers available in the UK have to be ‘smart’ models. This means they can receive over-the-air software updates, have configurable charging schedules, and boast additional features like tamper detection systems.
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There you have it, our complete guide to the world of electric car charging points. We hope it helped answer your questions and demystify the installation process. If you’re still on the fence about switching to an electric car or want to explore your options, you might also want to check out our electric car lease deals.
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