Some of the most commonly asked questions on electric vehicles and electric vehicle charging.
Last updated 5 December 2022
The upfront purchase costs of EVs are generally more expensive than their traditional counterparts at the moment, but prices are already falling and it’s expected that the cost of an EV will become comparable or even cheaper than a conventional petrol or diesel car. In the long run, cheaper fuelling, tax and maintenance costs will offset the purchase price and make it cheaper to own and operate an EV.
Some EVs qualify for a government 'plug-in' grant which is included in the price offered by the vehicle dealer.
Charging an EV is currently far cheaper than filling a fuel tank with petrol or diesel. Fully charging an electric car at home costs around £20, based on a typical electric car with a 60kWh battery and range of around 200 miles, at an average cost of 34p/kWh. Travelling the same distance in a small petrol/diesel vehicle costs about £40. A motorway rapid-charge (50KW) will usually cost around £17 for a 30-minute charge, powering an average family-sized car for around 75-100 miles.
In most cases where a charger needs to be on-street, you'll need to request a new supply which is separate to your existing property’s supply. It's not permitted to run charging cables across public footpaths so the charging unit will normally be at the kerbside. Installers should make sure they have the relevant permission from the local council or land owner before installing charging facilities on land not controlled by the charge point owner.
As with a single vehicle charger it’s the responsibility of the installer to ensure that the existing supply is capable of supplying all of your property’s electrical demand. Charging multiple vehicles at the same time can lead to overloading of supplies or the need for a reduced charging output. Before installing a charge point, it’s important to understand if it will deliver the output you need and that it doesn't present a risk of overloading supply equipment.
Most mass market EVs today have a range of 100-150 miles before the battery runs flat, while some top-end cars, such as Tesla’s electric sports cars, can run for 334 miles before needing recharging.
Plan your long journeys by referring to a charge point map such as Zap-Map to make sure you don’t get stranded. Some EV charge points can provide enough power to travel 200 miles from a half-hour recharge.
Note that the range of your EV will be reduced if you use the vehicle’s heating or air conditioning during your journey.
EVs have advanced battery management systems designed to prevent damage to the battery and prolong its life. Your EV will generally charge slower:
Between 0-20% and 80%-100% state of charge
During periods of hot weather
During prolonged periods of charging
Where you're travelling on long journeys and regularly recharging the battery, particularly via rapid and ultra-rapid charging methods.
Minimise cabin heating and cooling to maximise range - you may find that using your EV's heating and cooling systems significantly reduces driving range as these are generally powered using the drive battery. As an alternative some higher specification EVs are fitted with heated seating and steering wheels which often use less power than full cabin heating; in some models these are powered from a separate battery so have no noticeable impact on range.
Avoid extreme acceleration and braking - driving at higher speeds depletes driving range more than driving at slower speeds; excessive speed will deplete range even more. Consider your EV's optimal efficient speed to maximise its range. On a longer journey the time you gain by driving faster may be lost because of the time you need to re-charge.
Regenerative braking - most EVs are fitted with braking systems which take the wasted energy from the process of slowing down a vehicle and use it to recharge the battery. Drivers at Electricity North West noticed a 10%-15% improvement in driving range when regenerative braking was enabled. This also has the advantages of reducing wear on brake pads and discs, and can improve vehicle stopping distances. You can generally control the level of regenerative braking in your EV's settings.
At present our forecasts show that there will be enough capacity in the North West to accommodate the uptake of EVs in the region. Our customers will charge their EVs at different times of day and in different locations meaning that existing network capacity will be used efficiently. In some areas the additional demand from EVs will be offset by flexible charging arrangements or through investment in energy efficiency.
In future smart charging and time-of-use tariffs will encourage off-peak charging and help to reduce high peaks of electricity demand, minimising the cost of EVs to the electricity system and keeping costs down for customers by enabling them to charge their EVs when power is cheaper.
There are plans to make home EV charging two-way. By using the batteries inside EVs as storage for the power grid, drivers could charge up when demand is low and power is cheap, and sell energy back to the grid during peak hours when people need it most.
Commuters could drive to work in the morning, plug in to charge their car battery while working, then draw power from their cars to save on their electricity bills in the evening. Later, they would use a timer to charge it back up again in the early hours when the price of electricity drops.
To connect your charge points under our install and notify policy you need to comply with the following:
Total installed property generating capacity (including any solar panels, storage and V2G storage) ≤3.68kW (16A) per phase and excluding any export limiting device