Electric vehicles are undoubtedly the future as we look to combat air pollution. Nowadays, almost every major car manufacturer has at least one electric car to offer consumers. There are also various schemes that encourage people to buy electric vehicles, but there’s a lot to know before you buy.
This guide will explain everything you should expect when purchasing an electric car. We’ll answer some of the most common questions people have on this topic, including how to get EV charger installation and how much this will cost.
You can find the answers to all of your burning questions down below:
What Are The Benefits Of An Electric Vehicle?
The main benefit is that these cars produce zero emissions. This means you are driving a car that won’t produce any pollution while you cruise around. If you live in the London area, you will also benefit by not having to pay any congestion charges.
On average, electric vehicles have lower running costs too. This is because they don’t have an engine or a typical transmission, so there are few components that can cause problems. It means they’re less likely to break down and require less costly maintenance.
Electric cars also generate way less noise, so they’re better for noise pollution in really condensed city areas too, leading to a better quality of life for all in the future. Some people also debate that these cars are better to drive because they are smoother and more responsive on the roads.
Lastly, you can get government grants when buying an EV, which you can’t get when buying a regular petrol or diesel car, and you don’t have to pay road tax.
What Are The Government Grants Available?
There is a plug-in grant available for low-emissions vehicles from the UK government. This grant offers a discounted price on some brand-new electric vehicles. However, the only vehicles that qualify for this grant are in the eight categories below:
● Wheelchair accessible vehicles
● Mopeds
● Motorcycles
● Small vans
● Large vans
● Taxis
● Small trucks
● Large trucks
The amount of money you get in the grant depends on the vehicle classification and how much it costs.
Furthermore, the EV charge point grant is another fantastic option to help you save money when buying an electric vehicle. It doesn’t matter what vehicle you purchase, the government will give you funding of up to 75% towards the cost of installing electric vehicle charge points at domestic properties across the UK. However, this is only open to people who live in a flat or rent a property.
There is also the Workplace Charging Scheme for businesses, which gives support towards the costs of buying and installing EV charge points on commercial properties.
How Can You Install An EV Charger At Home Or In Your Workplace?
It is possible to use a domestic three-pin socket to charge your EV at home. However, this is rarely recommended because of the amount of electricity used during the charging process. It’s fine to do this in an emergency, but you will need to have a property EV charge point installed on your property.
These charge points have been designed specifically to charge electric cars. They communicate with one another to ensure that the right voltage and charge are passing through at all times, avoiding things like blown fuses or damage to the electric motor.
Where can you buy an EV charger?
There are many different manufacturers that make and sell electric charging points these days. A quick Google search will let you find some of the best options around. You need to check what type of charger you need as well – this will be Type 1 or Type 2 – ensuring you get one that fits your car. Don’t worry, when you purchase your EV, you will be told what type it requires in the owner’s manual.
Once you have bought your EV charger, you need to install it. How do you do this? In truth, the best approach is to hire an electrician to handle the job for you. At SheaWorks, we offer EV charger installation services for both domestic and commercial customers. Whether you’re installing one charge point at home or multiple at your office, we will help you with everything. It’s important to get your charge point installed by professionals to guarantee everything is connected and working without faults.
In most cases, the best place to have an EV charge point at home is on the wall of your house. But, you can also buy some points that are free-standing, which you typically see in commercial car parks or outside office buildings.
How Much Does EV Charger Installation Cost?
The total cost of installation can vary depending on the charge point you purchase and where it is installed. Currently, the average price for an EV charger is just under £1,000. You can definitely find options cheaper than this, but they will usually be slow-charging ones. If you want a fast charger, you will have to invest a bit of extra money.
Again, the cost of hiring an electrician and installing the charge point can vary. It depends on where you live, how difficult it is to install and so on. Naturally, installing commercial charge points will be more costly because you typically install more than one. They are also free-standing ports, which are more expensive than the ones you attach to the wall of your house.
The good news is that you can save a lot of money by charging your car at home. Investing in a good charge point that charges quickly can help you save hundreds of pounds per year. It will ensure you can have a full battery every single day, reducing the need to use public EV charging stations. The problem with public ones is they tend to cost almost twice as much to use as the one you have at home.
How Much Do Electric Cars Cost To Run?
Once more, we can’t give a concrete definitive answer as it can vary dramatically based on many factors:
● What car do you have?
● How often do you drive your car?
● What charger do you use?
● How often are you charging it at home vs in public?
● Who is your energy supplier at home?
The cost of running your EV will likely be split into two four main categories:
● The cost of charging it
● The cost of maintenance
● The cost of insurance
● The cost of taxing the car
When it comes to charging your car, you will either do so at home or in public. As touched upon above, home charging is far more affordable. Under the current energy price caps that run until 30th September 2022, it will cost £18.37 to fully charge your car from 0% battery to 100%. Unfortunately, this will increase to £33.80 from October. By contrast, it currently costs between £22.81 and £26.10 to rapidly or ultra-rapidly charge your cat to 80% at public charging ports.
To put things into context, it is estimated that an EV costs around 10p per mile to run when you charge it using rapid chargers out in public. This is compared to 19p per mile for petrol cars and 21p per mile for diesel.
The cost of maintaining your car should also be significantly lower because an electric motor is far easier to look after than an internal combustion engine. We briefly mentioned this before, but an ICE involves so many different intricate parts that could be damaged and cause problems. Engines are prone to overheating, you have coolant leaks – so many more things can go wrong and need to be fixed.
In terms of insurance, you’re looking at the same factors that influence any car insurance premium. The type of car you’re driving, your age, gender and so on will determine how much you have to pay. Generally, insurance works out at around the same as a regular car.
One massive advantage of electric vehicles is that they are eligible for no road tax at all. This is because they create no CO2 emissions, meaning you save an absolute fortune over the lifespan of your car. That’s a good few hundred pounds per year you save on tax.
What’s It Like To Drive An Electric Vehicle?
It’s a lot easier than driving a manual car because it’s completely automatic. As such, you get a very smooth acceleration as you go through the gears, and EVs are naturally much faster off the start line. You will enjoy flying away from boy racers in their souped-up cars in your little electric vehicle.
They’re also much quieter to drive because there’s no engine noise, which can lead to much more peaceful journeys for you and any passengers in your car. In general, they tend to be very fun to drive because of the rapid acceleration and impressive braking. As a bonus, whenever you brake, your car uses the energy created through braking to charge the battery slightly – how convenient.
In conclusion, buying an electric vehicle can be extremely beneficial for you and the planet. If you’re interested in making a purchase, you will need to install an EV charging point. Feel free to contact us today for a quote on this installation and we can help you claim a grant if eligible too.
