Do I have to pay friends and family who charge their EV using my electricity during their visit?

‘My father-in-law drove from Stoke-on-Trent to Hitchin to see the grandchildren for Sunday lunch and when he arrived his EV (Audi e-Tron) was at 20 per cent.

It plugged into our home charger (we have an Ioniq 5, so we have a wallbox charger) and charged to 80.

I don’t want to be stingy, but he does this every time – and he comes over at least once a month.

Should I ask him to pay his costs?

I wouldn’t mind so much if it was a nightly rate with off-peak rates and cost less than a tenner, but he charges in the middle of the day so it’s about £20.

He wouldn’t ask me to pay for his gas… I don’t want to start a family – what should I do? Is there a precedent? Dan C.

This is the answer from Money’s EV expert Freda Lewis-Stempel: Dan, you’re asking a question that a lot of people are probably thinking. And if they aren’t already, the rise of electric cars means they soon will be.

Do you offer to let visiting friends and family charge on your home charger? And do you ask them to pay if they increase your electric bill?

Or if you are the visitor, do you ask for fees? Do you offer to pay? And how do you calculate how much it costs?

And as you pointed out, no one would ask you to pay for fuel, so when you compare it like that, it seems a bit crazy to pay for someone’s expenses. But then it’s usually much cheaper, and depending on where you live, there may not be public chargers nearby.

This is uncharted territory for humans and there is no official line – so what is proper etiquette?

With many EV owners dealing with this issue in typical British fashion, we asked some EV experts what the fairest and most polite way to handle the situation is.

AA President Edmund King expects this question to ‘become more common’: ‘Most people tell AA that they would not charge for close family and close friends if it were not abused, for example if they came every week for free. ‘

King also points out that you can rent a charger through platforms such as Co Charger or Just park or Charging. With brands like Evois you can assign a PIN code to a neighbor so he or she can come and charge at their leisure and you have an overview of what happened. costs’ and are a good solution for ‘a neighbor waiting to get to a charging station or a builder’.

Evois shows how much range was added to the car, how long the session lasted and how much it cost.

Quentin Wilson, Faircharge UK says: ‘Etiquette for friends charging at your home is not to ask them to pay. EV owners tend to have a helpful community spirit.

‘But if it is a stranger who may need to charge in an emergency, or if you share the charging station at home, you normally ask him or her if he or she wants to pay, or at least make a contribution.’

Michelle Breffitt, co-founder of Women Drive Electric says: ‘Under no circumstances would I ask a friend or relative to pay to charge their car when they visit us, especially at night, on my cheap EV energy tariff.

‘The simplicity and convenience of charging when stationary greatly appeals to drivers and also allows us to spend more time with loved ones.’

What should you do if a visitor wants to use your EV home charger? A rough etiquette guide

Just as when electric vehicle charging became commonplace at services or dedicated hubs, charging etiquette needed to be established.

There are no hard and fast rules, but more of a code of conduct that reasonable members of the EV community follow.

After taking stock of the different points of view, we’ve chosen some tips to help address these conversations.

Always let a guest use your home charger

Whether or not you ask your guest to pay, always let him/her use your home charger. It’s just good manners and every EV driver knows what a difference it makes to have an easy, reliable charging option to hand.

As a host, it’s up to you to make sure your guest feels welcome and has an easy stay, and nowadays this also includes electric vehicle charging.

Moreover, it will also be cheaper for them even if you decide to ask them for payment or if they offer it.

When a visitor comes to stay overnight

If a friend or family member needs to charge and they’re staying overnight, offer to let them charge, but schedule it during off-peak hours so it costs a lot less. Especially if they’re just doing a top-up, it’ll probably cost you less than a tenner, so it seems benign not to ask the guest to pay.

If they appear several times a month, you can reevaluate.

When the visitor is alone comes to light

If you’re happy to cover the costs, it’s a very nice gesture to offer to cover the costs, but given it’s likely to cost around £20 or so, it seems reasonable to at least ask for a contribution.

Again, this depends on how often they visit and we highly recommend checking what percentage they use because if they only need a 10 percent top-up it’s a bit stingy to ask for it.

How long will the visitor stay?

Of course, if your visitor stays and drives around for several nights, a week or even longer, consumes the battery and has to charge it several times, it is of course completely fair to ask him to pay for the charging.

There are several costs added up, and you certainly wouldn’t pay for multiple tanks of fuel, so don’t feel bad about this.

If you are the visitor: should you offer to pay to use your host’s EV home charger? A rough etiquette guide

It’s absolutely fine to ask your host to use their charger.

While we may have just told the host that he should not ask for payment, but that as a guest you should always offer.

Once again it is a matter of decency. It’s very likely that your host will wave your offer away, but if you’re going to plug in your car for some juice (especially during peak hours), then you need to take the initiative on payment.

A happy medium: offer a contribution other than payment

If you use a friend or family member’s home charger and he/she doesn’t ask you to pay, it’s a nice touch to give him or her a small thank you gift, such as a box of chocolates or a bottle.

What should I do if my neighbor asks to use my EV charger? Or can I ask my neighbor to use the charger?

Generally, this situation will only occur if someone’s charger is not working, or if all local public chargers are busy and there is time pressure, or if someone’s guest is already using their charger.

In these cases, it’s okay to ask your neighbor to use the charger and the right thing to let your neighbor charge.

After all, that’s what neighbors are for: to help each other.

But be sure to pay your neighbor. And if it’s anything but a small, cheap nightly charge, it’s completely fair to ask them to pay!