Latest Electric Vehicle News
Northgate Vehicle Hire launches Drive to Zero fleet electrification programme
In order to aid driver training around best practice for EVs, Northgate has a full suite of EV training modules available to help address challenges and help drivers adopt new driving techniques to optimise EV range. Free to all its EV customers, the broad suite of learning modules help drivers up-skill with ease on all manner of subjects from EV driving best practice, to charging, and a host of other ‘how to’ topics in between.
Government urged to alter salary sacrifice rules for lowest paid
Under the existing rules, no employee can enter into a salary sacrifice scheme for assets of any kind, be they cars, bikes, pensions or healthcare, if by doing so the arrangement takes their take-home pay below the National Living Wage (NLW). The NLW is the statutory minimum wage rate that must be paid to workers aged 23 and over. It currently stands at £9.50 per hour, a standard that came in from April this year and was up from £8.91 in the previous tax year.
Pick lower hanging fruit first when it comes to EV adoption
Fleets that are hanging back from starting to acquire EVs are quite often reticent because there are problems surrounding particular drivers and their vehicles, such as issues with vans being charged by drivers overnight. In some cases, this seems to bring about an inertia around the whole subject.
Drivers need practical advice on home charging
New EV drivers are treating their new vehicle in the same way as they might their mobile phone. They come home and they plug in their car or van overnight, no matter what the state of charge. This isn’t good for mobile phones and it isn’t good for EVs. You shouldn’t seek to top up your vehicle continually but let the battery run down to the point where it needs charging if your journey pattern allows
Salary sacrifice EVs can help staff tackle cost of living crisis
There is a misconception that salary sacrifice car schemes are for the more highly paid employees who are paying tax at 40%, but in reality, the ones they really benefit are ones at the lower end of the pay scale paying tax at 20%, as you cannot allow a salary sacrifice to take net pay below the minimum living wage
Scottish SMEs join new £80m electric vehicle charging point contract
Famework will enable councils and other public bodies to source the supply, installation and maintenance of electric vehicle charging points, from companies who have been through the tender process and are ready to do business. A total of 33 suppliers – all UK based - have joined the first-generation framework. They each now have the opportunity to secure a share of the business, which is expected to be worth £80m over four years.
Punitive insurance rates hitting poorer EV drivers
Salary sacrifice and fleet management specialist, Fleet Evolution said it has seen insurance rates increase by between 150% and 300% for electric cars in recent months, based on what the company believes is now outdated research and uncompetitive insurer attitudes towards EV running costs.
New pop-up mini solar car park launches
Developed by 3ti, designer, installer, funder and operator of Solar Car Parks (SCPs), Papilio3 tackles the UK’s need to expand electric vehicle (EV) infrastructure ahead of the government’s proposed ban on the sale of new diesel and petrol vehicles in 2030. The unit is built around a recycled shipping container and can support up to 12 fast EV charge points. The solar and battery-boosted charging system optimises the speed of charge and reduces the carbon intensity of electricity used.
Is battery swapping the answer to an inadequate charging infrastructure?
There’s a lot to like about battery swapping. For one, it reverses the standard time tradeoff between EVs and gasoline-powered vehicles. Many EV owners plug in overnight and charge for hours. In general, fast chargers can now charge a battery to 80% in a little under half an hour. But in that time, some battery swap stations could charge dozens of cars to 100%.
EV charging payment specialists Mina partners with InstaVolt
Offering a nationwide network at convenient locations such as Costa Coffee, McDonald’s and Booths Supermarkets, the network is expected to grow by a further 500 charge points in the next 12 months. The company also has plans to introduce higher powered chargers into its network later this year, capable of charging at speeds up to 160kW, reducing charging time for drivers and further enhancing the experience for those charging on the road.
ChargedEV – helping SMEs on their electrification journey
As a truly independent charging specialist, unallied to any energy supplier or charge-point provider, ChargedEV can offer expert consultancy from the outset, ensuring the right solution for every individual customer. It offers a turnkey solution for business operators, undertaking to manage every aspect of the process from local authority authorisation, groundworks and connection to the local grid supply, to advising on leaseholder agreements, building regulations, installation and maintenance.
Fleets reveal their electric ambitions
Research reveals a reassuring sense of confidence among fleets towards the switch to EVs, with 25% of both groups admitting to feeling ‘excited and proud’ about the prospect of an electric fleet. 69% of fleet managers and 52% of fleet drivers say they feel this way because of the positive impact switching will have on the environment.
ZenAuto and the art of EV charging with Ohme
ZenAuto is part of Zenith and provides drivers with the options of new or used cars. It has a fleet of over 9000 cars, with an increasing number switching to electrified vehicles. A survey undertaken by ZenAuto following the COP26 climate change summit in Glasgow, found that more than a third of drivers were considering a switch to an electric car sooner than they had originally planned.
What are the hidden costs of an EV fleet?
Is the transition to EV for many fleets is being done far too early, and will it have significant cost and operational implications? Total Motion's view on the charging network is that this so far behind demand that it foresees large queues and increased roadside failures from running out of charge.
Gridserve opens new Electric Forecourt in Norwich
The new Electric Forecourt is one of the most advanced EV charging facilities in the world, hosting 36 EV chargers, including 22x high-power chargers with up to 350kW of power – the fastest chargers commercially available today, capable of adding up to 100 miles of range in only five minutes.
Churchill Expert partners with char.gy for EV fleet insurance
Char.gy is a community charging company that focuses on providing lamp post and bollard charge points that enable councils, businesses and parking providers to offer an easy to access EV charging amenity to their residents and drivers. It has pioneered EV charging in densely populated city centres such as London, where there is a lack of residential, driveway or garage parking.
Call for government to double its chargepoint targets
Venson Automotive Solutions is calling upon decision-makers in Parliament to upscale its goal of having a minimum of 300,000 chargepoints in place by 2030 to at least 600,000, if fleets are to successfully and confidently transition to electrification.
Electric cars take record Q1 share at Fleet Alliance
Glasgow-based leasing and fleet management expert expects to grow the electric element of its fleet still further this year due to the launch of its innovative electric salary sacrifice scheme, which is intended to allow small and medium sized businesses to offer their employees low emission electric cars at highly attractive rates.
eEnergy and EO to install 50,000 workplace EV chargers by 2030
Latest figures from the Department for Transport show that while there are now more than 250,000 home charging devices in the UK, only 2,038 devices have been installed through the government’s on-street charging scheme since it was established in 2017, meaning those without off-street parking are being left behind. eEnergy’s workplace charging rollout is actively targeting education and other public sectors with the greatest need, ensuring staff, customers, students, and patients can all access the most reliable EV charging services.
Plug-in van and truck grants extended
As well as the extension to grant schemes, the Government has also announced it will continue to allow drivers holding standard car driving licences to drive electric goods vans at a higher weight limit, up to 4.25 tonnes (compared to a 3.5 tonne limit for diesel vans). This takes into account the additional weight of electric vehicle batteries and makes it easier for businesses and drivers to make the switch.
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