Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 26
26
Accepted
Department monitors public charging costs and promotes home charging access for on-street parking
Conclusion
The Department stated that it monitors the different prices charged by different networks, and models the costs of different charging behaviours, such as whether someone does all their charging overnight on a driveway or entirely on more expensive rapid charging on the public network.46 The Department has also made efforts to widen access to home charging rates for those that park on–street through issuing guidance around using gullies and other means to safely house cables across pavements.47 As the market is maturing, it is starting to see cheaper tariffs appear for consumers if they do things like cede control over when their vehicle charges.48 43 Qq 82, 84 44 Q 83 45 C&AG’s Report para 3.8 46 Qq 89–91 47 Q 97 48 Q 36 17
Government Response Summary
The government confirms it already monitors charging costs across various channels and will continue to work with HM Treasury to understand cost variance. It also outlines new monitoring for the Public Charge Point Regulations 2023.
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government
Accepted
4.1 The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation. Recommendation implemented: April 2025 4.2 The department has appointed the Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) to act as the regulator for the Public Charge Point Regulations 2023 (PCPR). The department will monitor compliance through reporting from OPSS. In addition, the impact of the PCPR will be assessed through the department’s Technology Tracker, monitoring of open data from chargepoints, and engagement with industry and consumer groups. The PCPR will be reviewed within five years of coming into force, as per section 13 of the Regulations, and the department will publish the outcomes of this review. 4.3 The department already monitors the cost of charging across a range of charging channels, including domestic chargepoints, and fast, rapid and ultra-rapid public charging. This is undertaken on an ongoing basis using publicly available information on electricity tariffs and data purchased from Cornwall Insight on the cost of electric vehicle charging. 4.4 The government will continue to work with HM Treasury to understand the variance in costs associated with public and domestic charging and the extent to which any change in policy might impact the price of public charging, as well as consumer demand for EVs.