More than half (52%) of councils have spent nothing on EV chargers in 2021, despite record electric vehicle sales.

While some parts of the country have made sizeable investments in EV infrastructure in the last year, others have spent nothing

A FOI (Freedom of Information) campaign sent by EV charge point management platform DevicePilot to 374 local councils in the UK found that while some parts of the country have made sizeable investments in EV infrastructure, others have spent nothing.

And nearly half of councils (46%) said they don’t know how many charge points they will install in 2022, or are planning to install zero.

That’s despite clear evidence of demand from drivers for chargers. The DevicePilot FOI report says nearly two-thirds of UK councils (60%) received complaints about the availability, reliability or number of charging points over the last 12 months.

Government funding is available for installing charge points; the On-Street Residential Chargepoint Scheme launched in 2016 and offers up to 75% of the cost of procuring and installing charge points, with local authorities able to find the remainder through public and private sources.

OZEV has allocated £20m of funding in 2021/2022 for the scheme and the Government has urged councils to take up the funding.

DevicePilot said the FOI data indicated the UK was not ready for mass take-up of EVs, despite the 2030 ICE ban.

“Universal EV ownership is not a target, it’s an inevitability,” said Pilgrim Beart, DevicePilot CEO and co-founder. “In the next 10 years, more than half the cars on the road will be electric. To facilitate this transformation, the UK must install tens of thousands of charge points reaching every corner of the country.”

The DevicePilot research also revealed that the average cost of a council-bought charge point in the UK is £6,000, although figures range between £350 and £100,000.

Councils spend, on average, more than £2,000 per year just on EV device maintenance and the total cost of EV maintenance across the UK is estimated at £5.6m.

“EV charger maintenance is already a sizable expenditure for councils, but this will only grow as EV charger numbers increase. Likewise, many councils will need to budget for maintenance costs in the years ahead when their current supplier contracts expire,” said Pilgrim Beart.

Looking ahead, councils are planning to install 52 charging points on average in their area by the end of 2022, up from 28 in 2021.

Charge point deployment is far higher in the capital; London councils spent more than double the national average on EV charging in 2021 (£204k).

Even when population figures are considered, London is still ahead of Scotland, Wales, and the rest of England. London councils spent 71p on EV charging infrastructure per person on average, compared to a national average of 49p.

The divide is even clearer when viewed by new chargers planned per council, per 100,000 people. London councils are planning to install, on average, 39 new chargers per 100,000 people. The national average is only 15 new chargers per 100,000 people.

The research also found that many councils lack the funding required to pay for their 25% share of the charger cost; a point already made by the Association of Fleet Professionals, which has said it’s tricky to get a kerbside charging unit put in at the moment as some councils don’t have the money.

One council in the North West responded to DevicePilot’s FOI: “We have experienced over £100m in budget reductions from Central Government since 2010, which is a 50% funding cut.”

Connected Kerb also warned earlier this year that many local authorities are struggling with the time and resources to get to grips with what’s required of them in terms of charging, exacerbated by the pandemic. It’s working to tackle charging inequality, including through a ‘blueprint’ project for local authorities across the UK to deliver sustainable, affordable and accessible EV infrastructure.

DevicePilot’s Pilgrim Beart continued: “EVs are vital to the UK’s carbon emissions targets, but while some parts of the UK are on schedule to meet greater EV demands, others areas lack the funding to do anything whatsoever. I have a lot of sympathy for councils whose budgets have been stretched to breaking point by the pandemic and budget cuts, but we cannot continue to let the divide between the EV haves and have nots grow further. It should be the UK’s short-term goal to ensure everyone in the country can reap the benefits of EVs, not just the privileged few.”