Electric car charging firms agree on single subscription model

Tristan Shale-Hester 2019-09-30 12:30

Nine charging firms in the UK and Nordic countries will allow drivers to access their networks via a single subscription

A number of major electric car charging companies have signed a pledge agreeing to let drivers access their respective networks in the UK, Denmark, Sweden, Norway and Finland charge their cars via a single subscription.

The nine firms – Allego, EVBox, NewMotion, Charge4Europe, Chargemap, ChargePoint, Engenie, Franklin Energy, and Travelcard – will not only allow drivers to pay for their services via one subscription, but will also share charging station information with one another so users can see which charge points are free and how much it would cost to charge at each one.

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The aim of the agreement is to improve public EV charging infrastructure in the UK and the Nordic countries, as both markets are far behind those of continental Europe when it comes to interoperability.

NewMotion – part of Shell Group – says EV drivers needing various memberships, subscriptions and payment cards to access different networks has created an inconsistent experience for customers, whereas it believes a more joined-up, consumer friendly system could make EVs more desirable.

The single subscription service will be especially useful for business drivers, as they will no longer need to ask for reimbursement for multiple accounts from their employer. Instead, they will be able to manage all their billing, settlement and reimbursement automatically with one organisation.

Sytse Zuidema, CEO of NewMotion, commented: “This agreement is a big victory for current UK and Nordic EV drivers that will help stimulate EV growth in the regions.

“NewMotion’s wider experience in Europe, where we have a public network of over 118,000 charge points, has shown that making charging more accessible and easy helps encourage EV adoption.

“As such, we’re excited to be part of a partnership that will no doubt help drive EV adoption in the UK and Nordic countries.”

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