Manchester topped the electric vehicle (EV) home charger installation charts during 2023 according to data from home EV charge point installers Smart Home Charge. The West Midlands was a close second.
South West London came in third place, whilst Northern Ireland had the lowest percentage of home EV chargers installed – just 0.11% of the overall total
The most popular charger was the Easee One, followed by the Ohme Home Pro and ePod
Data from home EV charge point installers Smart Home Charge reveals that in 2023 motorists from Manchester and the North West led the charge for having the most home EV charge points installed. They accounted for 10.71% of the installations, with the West Midlands following close behind at 10.25%.
The data also revealed that London isn’t the EV charging hotspot that many might imagine. Whilst South West London came in third with 9.62%, South East London was 9th with 5.35% of the total and North West London was 11th with 4.89%. North East London was near the bottom of the chart at 14th with 2.66% of the total UK installations. Overall, London made up 22,52% of the total home EV charge points installed UK-wide.
Northern Ireland (NI) was at the bottom of the table with only 0.11% of the installations. However in January 2024 it was reported that sales of battery electric vehicles (BEVs) in NI had grown by 77% during 2022-23. The Electric Vehicle Association Northern Ireland (EVANI) also ran a survey which discovered that the majority of Northern Ireland’s EV owners were delighted to have made the switch, with only 1.7% saying they wouldn’t buy an EV again.
The most popular charger by far was the Easee One, which was voted the best home charger by Auto Express magazine. It was chosen by 48.8% of customers. In second place was the Ohme Home Pro and ePod, with 27.2% of the market.
The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders reported that the UK’s millionth EV was registered in January 2024, and that there was a 21% increase in sales of Battery Electric Vehicles (BEVs) between 2023 and 2024. This has led to an increase in demand for both home and public chargers.
Danny Morgan, editor at Smart Home charge said, ‘Home charging is the most convenient and economical way to charge an EV, so as EV sales rise, home charger installations will too. However the regional patterns aren’t what many might expect. The perception of EVs is that they are very much concentrated in London and the Home Counties, but as we can see from the data, they are growing in popularity in Manchester and the North West, and in the Midlands. This could be for a number of reasons, including the increasing introduction of Clean Air Zones (CAZ), which levy charges for polluting cars throughout the UK. For example, the Birmingham CAZ charge is GPB8 for passenger cars. However electric cars aren’t subject to these charges, which make them an excellent choice for far-sighted motorists.’
In London, properties with private parking where a charger can be installed are limited, whereas outside London more motorists are likely to have driveways. In Wales, Northern Scotland, Northern Ireland and the South West demand is lower but this may be because of their more rural locations, where motorists may be concerned about finding a charger when travelling far from home. However using an app such as Zap-Map can help motorists locate public chargers At the end of March 2024 there were 59,590 public EV chargers available at 32,322 locations in the UK.
James Court, CEO of EVA England said, ‘For the 70% of people with access to off-street parking, electric vehicles should be a no-brainer. Being able to charge with the cheapest electricity alongside the convenience of plugging in at home is unsurprisingly proving very popular.’
Danny Morgan adds, ‘There’s never been a better time to switch to an EV. They are far more economical to run than ICE cars, especially when using the best-value electricity tariff. And they’re becoming far more economical to buy. The new and much-anticipated Dacia Spring is priced at just GPB14,995, and will encourage even more motorists to make the switch to electric.’
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