How Do People With No Driveway Charge An Electric Car?

For the vast majority of electric vehicle (EV) drivers, plugging in the car at home is the most convenient way of charging it up. By simply plugging into a home charging wallbox while the vehicle is parked up and setting the charging time to start during off-peak power times, cost and environmentally conscious motorists can wake up to a fully charged EV battery every morning.

This doesn’t work for everyone though. Around a third of households in the UK don’t have off-street parking outside their homes, and this can make charging an EV much more complicated. This is because EV drivers who park on the road outside their home are forced to either charge their EV at public or work charging stations or run cables across the pavement that separates their property from their parking spot.

Several issues could affect EV and Plug-In Hybrid (PHEV) drivers who want to charge their vehicle outside their homes in this way. The big questions that most people will be asking themselves are ‘what are the possible legal implications of doing this?’, ‘what would happen if someone injured themselves by tripping over the charging cable?’ and ‘is it possible to safely charge up a plug-in car with extension cables?’

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EV drivers can’t realistically be expected to watch over their cable during the entire charging process, and even if you had a fast charger fitted it would still take many hours to get the battery up to a decent level of charge. So how is it possible to charge your vehicle safely while using on-street parking outside your home?

If you don’t have a driveway, you’ll need to find an area in front of your property as short a distance as possible to run the charging cable from the house or your dedicated outdoor charge point to reach your EV. If the distance is further than the cable that came with your vehicle can accommodate, you may need to order a longer cable or perhaps a suitable extension lead that can be safely used outdoors.

You’ll also need to reduce the chance of someone accidentally tripping over your EV cable. Something to help make the cable more noticeable and easier for pedestrians to step over safely is advisable.

One option would be a brightly coloured cable protector (like the sort commonly found on building sites), which would keep the charging cable in place while also giving the vast majority of passers-by something that they can easily step over or avoid. An EV cable protector can usually be bought for around £20.

There are no legal restrictions that mean you can’t charge your vehicle with a cable that runs across a pavement, but the Highway Act does give councils the power to remove cables that they think are in unsuitable locations. Some local councils have advised against it, but as the number of EVs on UK roads increases many believe that councils may begin to see the benefits of kerbside charging, especially if new innovations like lamp post charging become more popular.

Kerbside charging posts are already starting to appear up in some areas, and a number of councils have recently been approving EV chargers that are fitted to lamp posts in residential areas. This allows EV drivers to park on the roadside (ideally in front of their own house) and charge up their EV without the power having to come from their own home.

If connecting your EV to a charging point on or around your property is proving difficult, then you can always take advantage of the public charging network instead. Smartphone apps like Zap-Map will direct you to all the local charging points in your area or while you’re out and about, meaning you can charge your EV while at the supermarket, shopping centre or wherever an EV charge point has been installed. Many councils and public car park operators have successfully applied for grants and installed EV chargers in places like town centre car parks. In fact, the network of public charge points for EV’s recently reached 37,500 locations, making it easier than ever to plan long distance journeys. Topping up your car’s battery is getting faster too, with rapid chargers now available at most motorway service stations.

Workplace charging is also becoming much more common. If you’re lucky enough to have a car park at work the government grants currently available make the cost of fitting an EV charger really attractive to employers.

The Motability Scheme is a UK government-backed initiative dedicated to helping people with disabilities, war pensioners and carers drive a brand new, safe, and reliable car.

As a part of their 'worry-free' motoring package, Motability have partnered with BP Pulse to offer a no-cost charging solution to Motability customers who lease a 100% electric car.

Motability customers interested in an EV who don’t have a driveway (or access to suitable off-street parking) can choose a complimentary 36-month subscription to the BP Pulse network of public charging points instead of having a home charger fitted.

Motorists with a disability who do have off-street parking can opt for a compact, all-weather home EV charger - fitted by a qualified specialist BP Pulse installer - as a part of the lease at no additional cost.

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