British Gas has withdrawn its offer to provide free domestic charging points following the Office for Low Emissions’ (OLEV) decision to reduce its maximum grant support from £1000 to £900.
British Gas will now be charging £115 for the installation of a domestic 3kw charge point. A spokesman for the company told BusinessCar the decision was made following the drop in OLEV funding and higher administration costs to implement the programme.
British Gas originally provided the charging kits for free on the condition that users would provide anonymous data about charging habits back to the supplier. British Gas is pricing its higher-powered 7kw kit at £214 including VAT.
The OLEV is also introducing a policy from August 31, which will require those looking to install charge points at home to prove they own a plug-in car. BusinessCar asked the OLEV how this would be administered, but was told this had not yet been determined.
British Gas has partnerships with Nissan, Renault, Toyota, Mitsubishi Vauxhall and Volkswagen to provide domestic charging kits for customers.
The OLEV originally introduced the domestic charging grant in 2013.The revised home charging grant is due to run until March 31, 2015 or until the funds are exhausted.
Read the 29 July issue of BusinessCar for the full report on this story.