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EV drivers now face ‘Payment Anxiety’

Range anxiety was an oft-quoted deterrent to potential EV drivers but once people have made the transition to zero emission driving, they face something else to upset their equilibrium: ‘payment anxiety’.

New research by PayThru, in association with The EV Cafe has highlighted the various factors that drivers find stressful when paying for their EV charging. 

The report has identified four areas that need addressing to make the charging process easier to navigate:

  • What will I be charged?
  • Will my preferred payment method be accepted?
  • Will my payment go through?
  • Pre-authorisation

In terms of the first point – the uncertainty over what the driver will be charged – it is perhaps surprising that 75% of drivers are in favour of dynamic pricing, either for reducing queues and incentivising use at quiet times of where it helps make the electricity grid more energy efficient. However, 97% thought it was important or essential that live kWh rates are displayed prominently in EV app and 75% would like to be able to lock that rate in.

The fact that the survey asked respondents which of ten different payment methods they use highlights the problem in itself.  Only 13% of drivers use one payment method all the time with most using three or more. 

87% of drivers have had to download a new app at the charge point at least once, and 19% say they have had to do it frequently. 

40% of drivers say they have had  a payment fail to go through ‘occasionally or frequently’ while another issue with making a successful payment is mobile phone connectivity: 45% of drivers have had to phone up to make a payment at least once.

Pre-authorisation is the practice of the charge-point operator taking what is effectively a deposit from the users’ account to ensure that there will be enough funds to pay for the charging session. The survey found that while people generally had no objection to the practice, many had experienced problems with it. It cites a case in which a driver tried to start a charge three times, and were charged three pre-authorisation fees of £45. Because the attempt to charge ultimately failed, the ‘deposit’ was not refunded and which took a month to get back.

In the report’s conclusion Kate Tyrell, CEO & Co-Founder of ChargeSafe, says: ‘EV charging is becoming more accessible every day. As more diverse drivers switch to EVs – including those with accessibility needs and on Universal Credit – we increasingly find that the full breadth of user issues are publicly discussed, and charge point operators are pushed to improve. And to be fair to CPOs, most are listening and want to act in their users interests.

‘Fortunately the days are gone when chargers were in dark corners of a car park where many felt unsafe using them. They listened and changed. But there is lots still to do. CPOs need to keep listening to what drivers of all backgrounds are finding difficult, so they can adapt to offer the right solutions.’

The full report can be downloaded here

Paul Day
Paul is the editor of Public Sector News.
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