The Office of Low Emission Vehicles (OLEV) was set up to help support the wider adoption of electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles in the UK and offers a range of grants and assistance to help you make the switch to EVs.
The Government is committed to helping increase the amount of ultra-low emission vehicles on the road and this guide looks at some of the relevant grants and incentives which could make it easier for you to buy an EV.
Workplace charging scheme
Businesses, charities and the wider public sector can get grants of up to £350 per socket for installing up to 40 charging sockets for their employees and fleets.
You can read more about the OLEV Workplace charging scheme, including full details about the scheme and how to apply, on their website.
The upfront price of new electric vehicles can be higher than a comparable petrol or diesel car. To help overcome this, the government introduced a plug-in grant to help buyers offset some of the cost of a new EVs.
This grant is available on a range of eligible EVs including cars, vans, motorcycles, mopeds, taxis and even large trucks. To qualify for the plug in vehicle grant the EV you buy must; cost less than £50,000, have emissions of less than 50g/km, and a zero emissions range of at least 70 miles.
For Vans there is no upper price limit and the vehicle must have emissions of less than 75g/km and zero emissions range of at least 10 miles.
The maximum grant available for new electric cars is £3,000 while the maximum for a new electric van is £8,000, taxis can get up to £7,500 and motorbikes up to £1,500.
With these generous grants, and given the low running costs of EVs, the total cost of ownership of a new EV can fall broadly in-line with an equivalent petrol or diesel model. Even better, you don’t need to do a thing to qualify for the grant. The dealer who you buy the vehicle from will include the value of the grant in the vehicle’s price at point of purchase. If you lease your vehicles the leasing company will reflect the value of the grant in the rental figure.
You can read more about the OLEV plug in vehicle grants, including full details of every EV which qualifies for the grant, on their website.
There are additional OLEV grants available to help cover the cost of EV charging infrastructure.
The cheapest, fastest way to charge your EV is at home using a specially designed EV charging unit. This all-weather charging unit can be installed outside your home and can charge your EV in a matter of hours. By charging your EV from home you could save significantly on fuel costs.
OLEV provides grant funding of up to 75% towards the cost of installing a domestic charging unit up to £350. Householders must own, lease or be named as the primary user of an eligible EV or have a vehicle on order to qualify for the grant. The benefits of this are huge as you’ll be able to charge your EV overnight for a fraction of the cost of filling up a conventional car with petrol or diesel. It is also easy to use, simple to run and safe.
You can find out more about this grant, as well as related information and relevant application forms on the gov.uk website.
Not all EVs are eligible for the Government’s grant which helps cover the cost of installing a home charging unit. Your new or used electric car or van will need to be on OLEV’s eligible vehicle list.
The majority of vehicles available on our website are vehicles which meet this criteria, so you’ll have plenty of choice when deciding on an electric car or van that is eligible.
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