If you live in the south, we’ve got some bad news. You’re paying 28% more to charge your EV than people up north.
We haven’t pulled this figure out of our derrieres. New research from British Gas has found drivers in the south pay 28% more to charge at ultra-rapid chargers than those in the north of England and Wales. The discrepancy for faster chargers is a little smaller, at a snip over 10%.
British Gas’ research reveals that Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole operate the most expensive ultra-rapid chargers, which are all run by the council.
In East Anglia, London, the South East and the South West of England, charging costs an average of 32p per kWh compared with just 25p per kWh in the North. The South West has the highest costs at an average of £0.63 per kWh.
Further reading: How much does it really cost to charge an electric car?
“Currently, we have 21 progressive councils that have decided to support local EV adoption, so we would expect a greater uptake of EVs to come through in these areas than in councils where it is expensive to charge. If charging doesn’t become more accessible in these areas, we could see a slower rate of adoption.”
Lucy Simpson, head of EV enablement at British Gas said.
Of course, southerners are no strangers to paying more than people in the north. Be it a plumber or a plate of fish and chips, things are more expensive in the south.
While shocking, charging price disparities are to be expected. Energy rates and costs have always differed by region because of the different charges imposed on suppliers by distributors. Sadly, this will probably never change.
Charging networks are also hiking prices in response to the energy crisis. We expect prices to increase another 20% in 2022.
Source: Centrica (British Gas).
