Why should you invest?
Installing work place chargers can reduce the cost of fuelling your company cars to 5p per mile potentially saving thousands of pounds a year on fuel.
Benefits for your staff
As the market share for plug-in vehicles continues to grow, workplace charging will become a major benefit valued by staff. Get ahead of the curve and offer charging as part of your staff benefits package. It will increase employee satisfaction and may help you attract others when recruiting
Visitors will stay for longer
Charging facilities incentivise a visitor to spend longer in your business. The longer they stay the more likely they are to turn into a paying customer. It may also encourage new customers to visit your business if they know they can couple their visit with access to charging facilities
Convenience for customers and clients
In a highly competitive marketplace the smallest of factors can make a difference when trying to secure business. Providing charging for your customers and clients when they visit can play a part in their overall decision on whether to choose your business or not
Productivity
Providing charging at work can make your staff more productive. By removing the time taken to find and retrieve their vehicle from an off-site charging point, they’ll be more efficient with their time at work. You can also reduce the stress of range anxiety allowing your employees to focus on their work knowing they’ll be leaving with a charged vehicle
Commitment to sustainability
You can reduce your business’s CO2 emissions to meet your environmental goals and support a sustainable future. Vehicle emissions are the largest single contributor to CO2 emissions in the UK and over half of the vehicles on the road are funded by businesses. With the UK has committing to carbon neutrality by 2050, your business can make a real contribution to this effort by electrifying your vehicles
What options are available?
There are two types of charger to chose from, wall mounted and post. Once you've decided between the two you need to make a decision between their two derivatives, tethered and socketed.
Wall-mounted chargers
These chargers work in exactly the same way as home charge points. They are mounted in an ideal location on the side of a building where they can access the power supply. Wall-mounted charge points are the cheapest option and are the easiest to install. The downside that comes with this is that they are usually limited in terms of charging speed.
Post chargers
The post is a stand-alone unit which can be installed away from a building, typically in parking facilities. Posts allow for businesses to be more organized with their charging facilities and are more convenient for those using them as you don’t have to crowd around the side of a building. They can also have multiple leads to allow more than one vehicle to charge at one time. Posts are more expensive to install because of their charging capabilities and need to run the power supply underground to reach the post.
Tethered chargers
A tethered unit comes with a cable fixed to it. It is more convenient as you don’t have to connect and remove the cable every time you charge. However, you aren’t able to use the charger if the plug isn’t compatible your vehicle. You must consider the plug types your company cars before installing a tethered unit.
Socketed chargers
Socketed units allow for more flexibility as you can change charging cable depending on what vehicle needs charging. It is less convenient than a tethered unit as you have to plug in and remove the cable for each charge, but it will be far more suitable for your business if you have a wide range of vehicles using your charge points.
Charging speeds
A wide range of charging speeds are available for workplace charging. The power rating you can install depends on your power supply, space available and budget.
Slow 3.7kWh
Slow chargers provide a charging rate of up to 3.7kWh and can take up to 12 hours to fully charge an electric vehicle.
Fast 7kWh
Fast chargers provide a charging rate of up to 7kWh and can fully charge an electric vehicle in 4 to 6 hours. Your typical power supply shouldn’t have any issues support this rate of charging.
Fast 22kWh
You need a 3-phase power supply to support 22kWh charging. This power rate is hardly ever found in homes but is more common in commercial properties.
Rapid 50kWh
It is possible to install rapid chargers at work, but whether you can or not depends on your power supply and your budget. You may have to make expensive upgrades to the electrical supply to the premises to facilitate this rate of charging.
Ultra-rapid 100+ kWh
It is possible to install ultra-rapid chargers chargers at work, but similarly to rapid chargers, whether you can or not depends on your power supply and your budget. The cost of the units and the required upgrades to your electrical supply can be extremely expensive.
How much do they cost?
The two costs of installing a workplace charger are cost of the unit itself and the installation process. It is difficult to give exact pricing as it can vary depending on each situation. We’ve provided some rough prices as a guide below.
Slow 3kWh
You can install slow chargers from as little as £400-500 with the help of a government grant but can also pay up to £1000 for depending on the specification
Fast 7kWh
You can install a wall-mounted 7kWh charger from £400-500 with the help of a government grant but if you're looking for a post charger they can cost between £1000-2000
Fast 22kWh
You can install a functional 22kWh charger for around £700-800 with the help of a government grant but with higher specification and additional installation work they can cost around £2000
Rapid 50kWh and
It's difficult to estimate the cost of installing as it depends on the electrical supply and the work required but you can be looking at upwards of £5000
Ultra-rapid 100+ kWh
It's difficult to give a cost as usually installation requires an upgrade to the electrical supply but you could be looking at costs of up to £35,000 all in
Purchase options
Outright purchase
You can outright purchase a charge point outright from any reputable provider
Lease
Some providers allow you to minimise your upfront costs and pay for the charge point through leasing over a number of years
Workplace Charging Scheme
The Office for Low Emissions Vehicles provides support for businesses looking to invest in charging facilities through the Workplace Charging Scheme (WCS). You can find out more about the WCS here
Factors to consider when choosing your charge points for your business
What vehicles will be using them
What charging speed are your vehicles capable of? Not all vehicles are compatible with fast and rapid charging speeds. Check the the charging capabilities of your company cars before investing in an expensive charge point which they won't be able to use properly
Demand for chargers
How many vehicles will need access to them on a day to day basis? If they are in high demand, consider investing in either more units or faster charging units to cope with the demand
Time spent on the car park
How long do vehicles sit on the car park for? If you’ve got staff and customers regularly popping in and out, faster chargers may be needed for essential charging. If your staff spend most of the day in the office, you'll be able to use slower chargers.
Electricity supply
Your electricity supply will limit your options. You’ll need to check your electric capacity before making any decisions on what charge points suit your business.
Available space
How much space do you have to install chargers? If you’ve got the space, you can consider having several lower speed chargers. If you’re tight on space, consider investing in higher speed chargers instead to cope with your charging demands
Daily mileage of your workers
How many miles do your workers cover daily? Whether this is on the commute or doing jobs for your business, if your workers are covering lots of miles you may have to consider installing higher speed chargers to make sure they’ll always be charged
Access requirements
If you want to limit access to your chargers to a certain group of people consider using manufacturers that offer smartphone app or RFID card access. They'll allow you to track and manage who is using the charge points
Should your business install charging points?
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