Electric Vehicle ownership has become increasingly more popular. Official figures show that in 2021, 190,000 (or 11.6%) of all new car sales were battery electric vehicles. That’s more EVs than had been sold in the previous 5 years combined. Indeed, March 2022 was a record-breaking month with a new high of just over 39,000 new zero emission cars being sold. That’s an increase of 79% on the year before. And all this with a backdrop of the pandemic and a global semiconductor chip shortage. It’s still more expensive to own an electric vehicle though (just!). So it may be useful to know what grants are available for Electric Vehicles in the UK.
With only 11% market share of the new car market there is still some way to go. Government intervention will be needed to achieve the goals set out to increase electric vehicle usage and reduce/eliminate petrol and diesel vehicles on UK roads.
The price of purchasing an electric vehicle has always been higher than that of a conventional vehicle. But that is changing. And the point where electric vehicles will be cheaper to buy than petrol/diesel vehicles is rapidly approaching. When you factor in the extortionate cost of fuel at the pumps versus the cost to charge, we’re almost at the point already. It won’t be long until electric vehicle ownership is the more cost effective motoring option.
The good news is that there are Government grants available to help promote the ownership of electric vehicles. The bad news is these grants have changed somewhat in the last month. And with not much information out there to detail what the changes are we thought we’d put together a guide to what grants are available as of September 2022 in the UK.
From the 1st April 2022 the Government replaced the old Electric Vehicle Homecharge Scheme (EVHS), which was open to homeowners, with the EV chargepoint grant.
This scheme has replaced the EVHS scheme and is open to homeowners who live in flats and people that live in rental accommodation. To qualify:
Both the charging point and the installer must be OZEV approved. To receive the grant, the date of installation must not be more than four months ahead of delivery or registration date. More information on how we can help with this grant is available here or you can visit the government website for more specific details about the scheme.
A new scheme is available which provides funding to install electric vehicle chargepoints as a landlord, social housing provider or property factor in their rental and leasehold properties. This scheme replaces the old Electric Vehicle Homecharge Scheme (EVHS). The scheme is open to:
To be eligible you must be registered at Companies House. If not, you must be VAT registered with Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC). If you are not registered at either, you will not be eligible for the grant. To access the grant a landlord must first register. They can then appoint an OZEV approved installer who can claim on their behalf. The grant provides funding towards the cost of buying and installing EV chargepoints. Chargepoints may be able to charge one or more vehicles simultaneously, depending on the number of sockets they have.
The grant amount given is per chargepoint socket installed. It provides up to 75% of the cost towards the purchase and installation of a chargepoint socket, limited to £350 per grant.
Landlords can receive up to 200 grants a year for residential properties, and a further 100 for commercial properties. These may be across a number of properties and installations or just for one property.
The Workplace Charging Scheme (WCS) is a government scheme for electric vehicles offered by the Office for Zero Emission Vehicles (OZEV). The WCS is open to businesses, charities and public sector organisations that meet the eligibility criteria (see below).
Businesses can reduce the cost of Workplace charge points by up to £14,000 with the government WCS grant. It’s a voucher-based grant designed to help with the up-front costs of buying and fitting charge points at a workplace. Businesses of all shapes and sizes can be eligible for £350 funding per charging socket at their workplace car park. Along with this financial incentive there are also generous tax incentives for company car drivers using an EV vehicle. These can mean savings of more than £2,000 a year to businesses and individuals. Full details of the benefits of an electric fleet can be found on our blog.
The grant is capped at £350 per socket, up to 40 sockets.
MP Walden is a Commercial EV Charger Installer on the list of Government approved OZEV Workplace Charging Scheme authorised installers. Our experienced Commercial Electric Vehicle Charger Installers are available to help you through the process of claiming the grant. Full information on the scheme is available on the government website linked here.
It’s difficult to predict exactly what grants may appear in the future or how long the current set will be in place. When the EVHS was originally launched there were no end dates put in place. But with changing ambitions towards net zero, a limited pot for the grant and the success of the scheme, it was brought to an end and a replacement put in place, tailored to target a much smaller market. As with all policies, circumstances dictate how they evolve. The current situation in Europe that has affected gas and fuel supplies will undoubtedly force policy changes with regards to future EV adoption. And any change of governing party in the UK will predictably change the parameters of future grants.
Needless to say, as Electric Vehicle Charger Installers for both domestic and commercial customers, we make it our business to know exactly what’s going on in the market and with regards to policies and grants. If you’re in any doubt as to what grants are available for Electric Vehicles in the UK, especially those relating to EV Chargers, don’t hesitate to get in touch.
