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Free charging

Posted: Sat Nov 19, 2022 4:44 pm
by Colin1517
I read an article the other day about Tesco stopping the free charging at their stores, and wondered if there are any options left out there for a free charge now. I have a pod point at home so it’s not an issue as such, let’s be honest though, everyone loves a freebie!! 😂

Re: Free charging

Posted: Sat Nov 19, 2022 9:33 pm
by monkeyhanger
Doubt it - electricity is costing everyone a lot now, so they're loathed to give it away.

If you've a working charger at home, not sure why you'd really want to be jumping on a free charger on a visit to Tesco, especially if you're on Octopus GO or a similar cheap overnight rate. I couldn't be bothered to unfurl my type 2 lead and faff with the podpoint app to activate the charge, for the time I'd spend in there. Used to see the same cars in Tescos hogging the chargers at my local - funnily enough the chargers are now empty since they're no longer free.

Re: Free charging

Posted: Sun Nov 20, 2022 10:41 am
by Deleted User 456
Main reason I went electric is I commute about an hour each way, each day.
I got my workplace to install a chargers. I now can commute for free.

Interestingly, I don't even need to use the main 7kw charger either, my little Amazon 13A plug charger can more than offset 2 days of commuting use.

Re: Free charging

Posted: Sun Nov 20, 2022 10:48 am
by Colin1517
monkeyhanger wrote: Sat Nov 19, 2022 9:33 pm Doubt it - electricity is costing everyone a lot now, so they're loathed to give it away.

If you've a working charger at home, not sure why you'd really want to be jumping on a free charger on a visit to Tesco, especially if you're on Octopus GO or a similar cheap overnight rate. I couldn't be bothered to unfurl my type 2 lead and faff with the podpoint app to activate the charge, for the time I'd spend in there. Used to see the same cars in Tescos hogging the chargers at my local - funnily enough the chargers are now empty since they're no longer free.
As I said in my original post, access to free charging is not an issue for me. I have a home charger and all my charging costs are covered by my employer anyway, it was a simple enough question on a subject that could affect quite a few EV owners, many of them on here I would imagine.

Re: Free charging

Posted: Sun Nov 20, 2022 11:40 am
by Deleted User 456
I have noticed that cost of garage based chargers has risen considerably per KW over the last few months.

Re: Free charging

Posted: Sun Nov 20, 2022 11:49 am
by monkeyhanger
Colin1517 wrote: Sun Nov 20, 2022 10:48 am
monkeyhanger wrote: Sat Nov 19, 2022 9:33 pm Doubt it - electricity is costing everyone a lot now, so they're loathed to give it away.

If you've a working charger at home, not sure why you'd really want to be jumping on a free charger on a visit to Tesco, especially if you're on Octopus GO or a similar cheap overnight rate. I couldn't be bothered to unfurl my type 2 lead and faff with the podpoint app to activate the charge, for the time I'd spend in there. Used to see the same cars in Tescos hogging the chargers at my local - funnily enough the chargers are now empty since they're no longer free.
As I said in my original post, access to free charging is not an issue for me. I have a home charger and all my charging costs are covered by my employer anyway, it was a simple enough question on a subject that could affect quite a few EV owners, many of them on here I would imagine.
I do think that anyone who got an EV with no home charging provision must be off their rocker - charging away from home has always been inconvenient - now it's expensive too.

Re: Free charging

Posted: Tue Nov 22, 2022 9:32 am
by daern
I put £39 of my own electricity in the car in October to do just under 1200 miles, working out at a touch over 3p/mile. This doesn't include the odd free charge here and there which helps keep the price down a bit, and I don't believe I paid for any charges away from home in this period. This was 332kWh (supply), and if I were to put this in at my local shopping centre (79p/kWh!) it would have cost £262 - more than I would have used in diesel in my wife's old Megane in the same period! Oddly, you don't see many people using this particular charger...

The reality is that right now the cost to run an EV if you don't have the luxury of private parking, and your own charger, is completely unjustifiable and if they want to increase adoption of EVs, they need to sort out not just the availability of public chargers, but the cost.