What do I need to know about installing a home charger?

You can use a standard 3-pin plug to charge an electric car, but a bespoke socket will charge your EV much faster.  Other benefits of installing a charger are that you can 're-fuel' your car whenever you want, and that charging at home costs less than using a public electric car charge point.  Many electricity companies now have tailored tariffs, targeted at the cheaper charging of EV's at home overnight.  Average examples are £17 for a full charge at home, compared with £22 at a public charger for 30 minutes.

Taking a 40KWh Nissan Leaf as an example, using a 3KW home charger - the cost of a 13-hour charge could be £6 in the day-time, or £4 over-night.

We've referred to CheckaTrade for some impartial advice on car charge point installation.  The average cost now seems to be around £1,000, with £350 government grants sometimes available towards the installation.  Costs vary depending on how fast you want to be able to charge your car.