One of the many perks of owning an EV is the ability to ‘refuel’ your own vehicle from the comfort of your own home – even while you sleep!
But is this really a perk if you live in a flat, apartment or house without a driveway? If you’re one of the 40% of UK drivers who don’t have access to a driveway, how can charge your EV as and when needed? In fact, can you still own an EV if you don’t have a driveway?
How do home chargers work?
If you do have a driveway, it’s simple to get a home installer fitted for charging your EV. There’s a range of chargers for you to choose from along with companies who can fit them – this is also something our P+B team can help you with.
Prices range from around £400 to £1000 for a home charger. Home chargers at the cheaper end of the scale are likely to have a lower energy output and therefore slower charging rate, which is ideal if you just want to charge your vehicle overnight and time isn’t critical. While rapid chargers cost more, these offer a much faster charge rate. This would be the best option if you frequently need to get as much power in as little time as possible at your home at various times throughout the day.
Can I get a charger for my flat or terraced house?
Many of our clients live in cities, as it’s here that electric vehicles make the most sense due to having the most developed EV charging infrastructures and the need for cleaner air. With that being said, city living is also synonymous with flats, apartments and terraced houses – which also means reduced access to driveways.
If you don’t have a driveway, charging your EV at home is still entirely feasible, but just takes a little more planning.
For flat or apartment dwellers with allocated parking spaces for residents, contact your landlord and see if they could install a charger in the parking area. After all, having an EV charger at a residence is only going to increase its desirability, and eliminate any range anxiety that future EV residents might have.
The government has a grant available to help with the cost of installing a charger with 75% off the cost to buy and install a socket, up to a maximum of £350. The grant is available to both homeowners and renters, including those in shared ownership properties.
If you live in a house with on-street parking, you may be able to run a cable from your house to your car (it’s best to check with your local council first as local rules will vary). However, it’s important make sure you put a cover over the cable to reduce the risk of pedestrians tripping over it.
For neater charging options for this method, we love innovative solutions like the Kerbo Charge – EV cable channels that feed the cable through the across-pavement channel. This makes the cable flush with the pavement and reduces the risk of tripping. You’ll need to see if your local authority offers this.
Really struggling to charge your EV at home? You could also call Charge Fairy, which is a van that comes to your house with a mobile battery to top up your EV.
Does not having a driveway mean I shouldn’t get an EV?
Absolutely not. While it’s a nice convenience to be able to charge your EV from your own home, not being able to do this doesn’t drastically change how ownership of your EV would be, in fact many of our team are in this exact situation so are perfectly placed to advise.
Living in a house with no driveway, I was initially a little apprehensive about not having my own charge point, but my fears have been unfounded. The way I see it, I don’t have a petrol station in my house, and there are actually more charge points in close proximity to the house than there are petrol stations, so there’s really no hassle in leaving the car overnight or for a few hours to top up if I need to. Both my wife and I are fortunate to have charge points at or near our workplaces too, so on the days we take the car to the office, it can be parked there for the day. Sometimes it even saves us money, as we don’t have to pay for parking!
Douglas, P+B Marketing Team
Even if you can’t do any of the options listed above, you could use public charging points for your EV. There’s also a vast network of different car chargers available across the UK in places such as supermarket car parks, shopping centres and petrol stations. There were 64,775 different charging stations available as of June 2024, according to Zapmap, and this is growing all the time.
Additionally, there are over 1,400 Tesla Superchargers in over 140 locations across the UK, with many being found in motorway service stations. Each charger has the ability to add up to 172 miles of range in as little as 15 minutes, depending on your vehicle.
Local councils are also aware of the need to increase EV charging provision, so we can only expect this situation to improve in the next few years.
Ultimately, the ability to be able to charge your EV from home is not the be all and end all of EV ownership. Whether it’s the environmental benefit, cost per mile or lower overall maintenance costs, we believe there are still massive benefits to owning an EV.
Want to talk to us about getting an EV, or have questions about your charging options, then our team are here to help. Contact us today to book an appointment with our friendly team.
