EVs look cheaper as charging charges stay flat whereas petrol soars

Electric vehicle (EV) charging prices across the public network remained stable last month while petrol prices soared, new data shows.

 The AA’s EV Recharge Report found EV energy prices were frozen across all speeds in March, but prices on the other hand rose 0.63p per litre last month. 

The cost of filling up a tank hit a five-month high this month, with petrol now north of 150p a litre.

The EV charging price freeze comes as one retailer, EG Group, has begun adding EV charging costs to 50 forecourt price boards.

The AA found that at home and public 7kW charging costs stayed flat between February and March, costing 29p/kWh and 52p/kWh respectively both months.

Similarly fast charging (8-22kW) stayed consistent at 60p/kWh in March, as did rapid charging (23-100kW) at 74p/kWh and ultra-rapid (101+kW) at 77p/kWh.

EV drivers will start seeing these prices displayed at more charging stations, as Forecourt Trader has reported that EG Group will start putting ‘per unit charging prices’ on forecourt poles in order for EV drivers to quickly calculate the cost of ultra-fast charging on the go. 

Charge bonus: EV charging rates are flat, but the price of petrol and diesel are soaring 

EG Group has been installing live pricing at its EV charging stations since 2021 – a move the AA has welcomed with open arms. 

The AA believes adding charging costs to totem poles to help advertise prices will make it easy to compare the cost of recharging an EV to the cost of refilling a fuel car with petrol or diesel. 

It will also highlight to drivers that there are more charge points than they perceive. 

Jack Cousens, head of roads policy for the AA, said: ‘Prices that can be seen from the road will lead to good competition, and displaying them on price boards is great news. 

‘Not only will it show how cheap an EV is to run, it will raise the profile of chargepoints generally as drivers will notice there are more than they think.’ 

Tesla Supercharger Membership is now open to non-Tesla EV owners, who’ll now be able to benefit from the same cheaper kWh charging rate as Tesla owners. Membership cost has also been reduced – for all EV owners who are already signed up, or sign up from now on – to just £8.99 a month

Other forecourt operators are reported to be weighing up adopting this transparent ‘marked pricing’ method, with Motor Fuel Group (MFG) telling Forecourt Trader: ‘The topic is continually under review and were it to become mandatory in the UK, MFG would comply’. 

However adoption is a slow process as regulatory framework is being drip fed in.

In November of last year, the government introduced a new law to improve transparent EV pricing, as part of its ‘Public Charge Point Regulations 2023’.

Charging operators are now required to display the cost of charging either on the chargepoint itself or through an app or separate device. They also have to offer contactless payment at new chargepoints.

Tesla has recently introduced this with its latest V4 Supercharger, as well as opening Supercharger Membership up to non-Tesla EV drivers for the first time. The membership price has also been slashed from £10.99/month to £8.99/month.

Sainsbury’s new Smart Charge ultra-rapid service also displays live pricing data. 

Sainsbury’s launched its own electric car charging brand in January, becoming the first supermarket in the UK to introduce and run its own EV charging network

Stacking up: These Sainsbury’s stores have Smart Charge devices already available 

The Government recently refused to cut VAT on public charging from 20 to five per cent – in line with home charging rates – despite industry-wide pressure.

The Government ruled out this measure – proposed by the House of Lords Environment and Climate Change Committee – as doing so ‘would impose additional pressure on the public finances to which VAT makes a significant contribution’. 

In response the AA said: ‘We are disappointed that the Government has decided to rule out equalising VAT between domestic and public EV charging at this stage. However, The AA will be campaigning on behalf of all drivers ahead of a general election to make this ambition happen.’