Millions of EV drivers face £2,132 charge to keep cars on UK roads

Millions of EV drivers in the UK face a staggering £2132 charge to keep their cars on the road. RAC Charge Watch, the typical cost of using a rapid charger has increased by a staggering 28 per cent in the space of two years. Rod Dennis, spokesperson for the RAC, explained: "Drivers of electric vehicles might be frustrated that the cost to use rapid or ultra-rapid chargers remains stubbornly high, despite wholesale energy prices dropping.

"But they might also be surprised to learn that the actual cost of electricity they are using when they charge up makes up a relatively small part of the total price they have to pay due to the high charges levied on the networks for grid upgrades and connections."

Drivers today therefore pay £41.18 to charge a family-sized electric car from 10% to 80 per cent. It means a family charging up once a week face a £2132 charge. He added: "Our figures highlight the huge gulf in prices between those paid by EV drivers to use public chargers, and those that homeowners with EVs pay at home.

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"On the one hand, anyone who has an off-street parking space and a home charger installed can charge up for just a seventh of the price of using a lamppost or bollard charger off peak where these exist, and less than a tenth of the price of using a high-powered public charger."

Vicky Read, CEO of ChargeUK, said: "We believe reforms are needed to help charge point operators offer public charging that is as affordable as possible. The sector has committed to spend £6 billion ahead of demand and profitability to deliver the charging infrastructure that the UK needs. With a public charger being installed every 25 minutes and the network expanding by 42 percent a year, we are on track to do this."

RAC Charge Watch study is based on analysis of pence per kilowatt hour (kWh) charges from charging providers offering 50-149kW rapid chargers and ultra-rapid (150kW+) chargers.