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Electric Vehicle FAQs

At Richmond, we understand that there are a lot of question marks surrounding electric vehicles so we hope to address them all with our detailed FAQ section below. However, if your question hasn’t been covered, please don’t hesitate to get in touch where our friendly and knowledgeable team who will be able to assist you with your queries.

When it comes to charging your electric vehicle, there are three common options for EV owners -

  • Domestic Charging Cable - A charging cable will often be made available for you to plug your EV into a standard three-pin wall socket and this is typically referred to as ‘trickle charging'.
  • Home Charging Station - A wall-mounted charge station is installed at your home, providing a much faster charge vs a normal ‘trickle charge’ wall socket.
  • Public Charge Point - These allow you to charge your vehicle much faster, delivering as much as 80% in just 30 minutes.

There are numerous ways for you to find the nearest charging point to you –

  • Google - Simply search for "Charge Points Near Me" and Google will present a list of options for you to choose from.
  • In-Car Sat Nav - The Sat Nav will pick up charge points close to you and display them on-screen whilst on the move.
  • Zap Map - An innovative app for your Apple or Android device that locates and presents to you the charge points in the local area.

These are charging points made available for everyone to use. You’ll have to pay to use them, just like you would a petrol pump.

The charge point infrastructure across the UK is continually expanding with installations happening every hour which is rapidly closing the gap in terms of distance between each point.

A common misconception is that EV batteries aren’t suitable because they don’t last long enough, however a battery on an electric car is proven technology that will last for many years of trouble-free ownership with most manufacturers guaranteeing it. Hyundai, for example, gives an eight year warranty on their electric batteries.

Driving a low-emission vehicle can dramatically reduce the amount of Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) that you pay, or more commonly known as Road Tax. Vehicles that are emit zero-emissions are completely exempt from paying VED.

A vehicle that is powered by a fuel that is not petrol or diesel.

Climate change is a topic that is extremely important to the entire population, it affects us all. EVs produce zero emissions making them eco-friendly, therefore helping aid the environment we live in to flourish, whilst playing a huge part in reducing your carbon footprint.

Regenerative braking enables the vehicle to save energy that would otherwise be wasted. When the brakes are applied, the energy is captured and then used to recharge the vehicle’s battery.

Worldwide Harmonised Light Vehicle Test Procedure (WLTP) is a new testing procedure aimed at producing more real-world figures for fuel consumption and emissions.