Need some help folks - Home charge unit research UK

[Ozukus]

PS as I'm not a business user I am still waiting for the ex-demonstrator / used PHEV to appear at the right price

When I placed my order in early September the salesman stated that all dealers had been restricted to 1 demonstration unit only as all incoming units will be allocated to buyers.

Also had some late quotes come back a few days ago and the backlog has now extended out to January. So you may be waiting a while

 

[user 422]

PS as I'm not a business user I am still waiting for the ex-demonstrator / used PHEV to appear at the right price

You might find that ex-demo vehicle may not be granted the Gov subsidy !

 

[maby]

PS as I'm not a business user I am still waiting for the ex-demonstrator / used PHEV to appear at the right price

You might find that ex-demo vehicle may not be granted the Gov subsidy !

Possibly so. I'm pretty sure that the 100% corporation tax writedown only applies to new vehicles.

 

[ian4x4]

Sorry Chris I didn't mean to hijack your query.

But it is quite normal to wait for ex demos etc and they are starting to become available at around £30K and slightly below for GX4h.
I am a pensioner, i.e. non business user, therefore paying all my taxes.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/search/used/cars/mitsubishi/outlander/postcode/bs216ug/radius/1500/keywords/phev/onesearchad/used%2Cnearlynew%2Cnew/quicksearch/true

 

[maby]

Sorry Chris I didn't mean to hijack your query.

But it is quite normal to wait for ex demos etc and they are starting to become available at around £30K and slightly below for GX4h.
I am a pensioner, i.e. non business user, therefore paying all my taxes.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/search/used/cars/mitsubishi/outlander/postcode/bs216ug/radius/1500/keywords/phev/onesearchad/used%2Cnearlynew%2Cnew/quicksearch/true

Fully agree - and we've done it ourselves before now. I would assume that the dealer purchasing the car as a demonstrator would get the £5k bribe and hopefully pass it on in the asking price for the vehicle when he sells it - otherwise, it would never be possible for them to hold demonstrator stock.

 

[jaapv]

A friend of mine is trying to source one, as his Prius plugin was nicked last week.
Tax rules have changed a bit over here, so the current ones work out slightly more expensive for business users.
Dealers are asking 10% over list price for a car from last year with 20.000 km on the clock....

 

[Eggtastico]

I googled & looked on Energy Saving trust to see if/what grants was available.

British Gas obviously came up, but their prices was more expensive & I loath using corporates when possible!

Came across a few indies but was all North England/Scotland, then called ChargeMaster.
They gave me your number (Nottingham number)- but not been in contact yet as I the car still has not been ordered (waiting for my accountant to finish my 2013/14 books :? )

I tried looking for somewhere local, but can't find anyone - tried searching every major town between Swansea & Cardiff, but could not find anyone on Google.

I know plenty of qualified electricians, but I have no idea how I can help them get started installing these charge units & how to claim the grant money.

 

[Ozukus]

Evening all lucky PHEV owners and owners to be. Im working with some other independent installers and would be grateful for a bit of feedback.
When you first decided to purchase an electric vehicle did you research how to charge the vehicle? Did you google it? Take advice from the dealer once you had visited the dealer? Took advice from the manufacturers web site? Was there any info that you felt you didn't find from researching on the internet or that you didn't get from your installer?
Please don't tell me loads of horror stories (I know there are lots) we need to understand at what point you owners first thought about charging and where the information was from.
Any replies will be entered into a free prize draw to win a concept outlander (honest)
Cheers

So what happened with the prize draw!

 

[greendwarf]

I know plenty of qualified electricians, but I have no idea how I can help them get started installing these charge units & how to claim the grant money.

They have to be registered with OLEV

 

[Chrisdy]

It was a neighbour who enquired about an electric charging point and got a local company to come and do a survey. As his house is an identical design to mine, my neighbour invited me across and I was able to question the guy who did the survey. My neighbour then changed his mind about getting an electric vehicle, but when I approached the same company a couple of months later, after ordering the PHEV, they had stopped installing them because of the proposed changes to the Govt grant. I therefore contacted British Gas who came and gave me my free charging point just before the rules changed, and three days before I collected the car.

The company who no longer did installations still had an excellent website, and that was where I had done all the research. Pity they weren't able to capitalise on it any longer. Quite why they were unable to continue at the time British Gas were still installing free chargers was never really explained.

 

[chrisevcharging]

Thanks for the feedback guys.
Re prize draw..... Competition is open for a little longer yet, I will obviously let you know who does win
Chrisdy - a lot of installers stopped fitting when the grant changed in July as the government wanted more paperwork and some felt it wasn't worth their time.

I'll keep you posted with the outcome of the installer get together. One thing that is apparent from previous clients is that there is a real lack of information available to you guys, the end, user about charging. A few have said videos would be more helpful to explain the different types and ways of charging, it's a new technology so there will be a great need for information. A lot have said they want to know the costs of using electric opposed to fuel, a lot said it's a best guess.

Any more feedback would be appreciated.
Remember the prize draw!!!

 

[maddogsetc]

There are numerous installers like myself that are dotted around the country most of us are travelling here there and every where to get installs done. The further away the installs are the less economical the installs become. I've spoke with a few of the good guys about working together to help each other out. Idea is to have a web site listing independent installers with a map showing the regions they cover so any leads are directed at a local installer making the leads more successful and economical. The site needs to have general information about charging as I get the same question over and over with enquiries. If there are ten of us on the scheme a contribution from each of us can go along way to building more of a lead generating machine than just a web site. It also gives us more power when speaking with manufacturers and government about changes....
Any views on this appreciated - I'll add another concept outlander into the prize fund! (Honest)

Alluding to my previous post, it sounds to me like you need to form a trade organisation. Preferably one with some barriers to entry and a binding code of practice etc. That would certainly help prospective new clients when they are searching for potential installers.

Another thing that was mentioned by another poster is the metatags. Now I'm by no means an expert on this but it seems to me that a lot of the keywords that users will search for are quite generic - charging, electric, car etc., so you are fighting with a pretty huge body of websites for attention. It's only once one has already done a bit of research that you start to pick up some keywords that are more specific, but even then the results you get from most Google searches contain a great deal of irrelevant results.

If you were to form a trade body with a distinctive acronym and bombard the EV manufacturers and motoring press with PR you'd surely stand a better chance of getting your keywords to the attention of your target audience, namely those considering purchasing an EV/PHEV.

Populating your trade body's website with useful data and video guides as suggested will make the site more helpful and encourage recommendations / links-in etc. Your aim could surely be to become the single best (UK) internet resource for all EV charging related matters?

 

[ian4x4]

Populating your trade body's website with useful data and video guides as suggested will make the site more helpful and encourage recommendations / links-in etc. Your aim could surely be to become the single best (UK) internet resource for all EV charging related matters?

I think that this idea would certainly attract a lot of attention (and therefore publicity)

News, instructions, explanations of the various charging sources (private & Public) and suitability for which EV / PHEV cars would be very handy.

 

[Regulo]

Now, I'm having a really hard time with this home charging lark. Bear with me while I explain. I have no need of a charge point fitted at home, I'm perfectly happy to use the charger that came with the car. BUT - I spend two nights a week at my disabled aunt's house. Her garage has a canopy type door, so I have to reverse in (for clearance). That means getting the charger out of the back, taking it to the back of the garage, backing the car in and then connecting up. I can do without this, especially when it's P'ing down! So I tried to get chapter and verse on whether I can get a subsidised point fitted at a location other than where the car is registered. Apparently, this is a question too far for all the big installers, as I can't get them to give me an answer. Well, one was good enough to tell me "No way, hahaha!". Why can't I just buy one of the units and get a local leccy to fit it? Why so expensive, too?

 

[Ozukus]

For some reason I seem to remember reading that you can get one installed at locations where a regular electric car will be. It may be that your Aunt can apply for it and be qualified on the basis that you, with an electric vehicle, provide her with disabled support.

Pretty sure this was on the government OLEV site, or via a link from the British Gas site.

 

[maby]

Now, I'm having a really hard time with this home charging lark. Bear with me while I explain. I have no need of a charge point fitted at home, I'm perfectly happy to use the charger that came with the car. BUT - I spend two nights a week at my disabled aunt's house. Her garage has a canopy type door, so I have to reverse in (for clearance). That means getting the charger out of the back, taking it to the back of the garage, backing the car in and then connecting up. I can do without this, especially when it's P'ing down! So I tried to get chapter and verse on whether I can get a subsidised point fitted at a location other than where the car is registered. Apparently, this is a question too far for all the big installers, as I can't get them to give me an answer. Well, one was good enough to tell me "No way, hahaha!". Why can't I just buy one of the units and get a local leccy to fit it? Why so expensive, too?

It would not have been a problem a couple of months ago - nobody asked any questions - but the take-up from people with no electric car and little intention of buying one was too great and they tightened up the rules - possibly too much.

That said, I don't think it is necessary for the car to be registered at the address in question - it is certainly still possible for someone with a lease car to get a subsidised point and I don't think it would be registered to their home address, would it?

 

[rgilyead]

Well folks, after ordering my charger from Pod Point the wait began. Nearly 9 weeks later and I am hoping it will be installed on Friday. It has been a catalogue of duplicate emails, lost application forms and site photos, and inexplicable delays. My faith in the installation is pretty much rock bottom so I hope it goes smoothly on the day.

 

[maby]

Well folks, after ordering my charger from Pod Point the wait began. Nearly 9 weeks later and I am hoping it will be installed on Friday. It has been a catalogue of duplicate emails, lost application forms and site photos, and inexplicable delays. My faith in the installation is pretty much rock bottom so I hope it goes smoothly on the day.

Is it an unusual installation? I had no site visits or photos - just asked Chargemaster to do it, an engineer arrived a couple of weeks later with a van full of tools and charge points and three hours later (plus a couple of cups of tea), I was the owner of an installed charging point

 

[Fendoch]

Now, I'm having a really hard time with this home charging lark. Bear with me while I explain. I have no need of a charge point fitted at home, I'm perfectly happy to use the charger that came with the car. BUT - I spend two nights a week at my disabled aunt's house. Her garage has a canopy type door, so I have to reverse in (for clearance). That means getting the charger out of the back, taking it to the back of the garage, backing the car in and then connecting up. I can do without this, especially when it's P'ing down! So I tried to get chapter and verse on whether I can get a subsidised point fitted at a location other than where the car is registered. Apparently, this is a question too far for all the big installers, as I can't get them to give me an answer. Well, one was good enough to tell me "No way, hahaha!". Why can't I just buy one of the units and get a local leccy to fit it? Why so expensive, too?

Hi
I don't see what all the problems in getting charging units installed
I originally had a chargemaster installed by British Gas installer and it was upgraded to universal and 32 amp untethered unit I find it a great unit, but through a contact I managed to get another tethered 32 amp Rolec unit at a good price and got my own electrician to install it in a further area of our property Never needed to install the meter part of it but both units work perfectly and friends who have leccy cars can use one or other of the units at the same time as I use the other
So yes if you can find a contact to sell you a unit at a reasonable price then get your own electrician to install it this will solve all your problems
You are better using a charging unit to charge your vehicle rather than just plugging in the cable that came with your car It will recharge faster for a start

 

[Regulo]

So yes if you can find a contact to sell you a unit at a reasonable price then get your own electrician to install it this will solve all your problems

Yep, so who wants to sell me one? And, do the ones with the SIM cards work without a card in them? Or do I have to have one without the SIM card if I want to get it fitted myself?