The Cost of Charging an Electric Car With a Rapid Charger
Reading time 5 minutes
Categories Electric Vehicles (EVs) »
The Cost of Charging an Electric Car With a Rapid Charger
Reading time 5 minutes
Categories Electric Vehicles (EVs) »
The number of electric vehicles (EVs) on the roads in recent years has soared exponentially.
Where once you were only likely to see a handful of EV drivers, as of 2023 it is predicted there are more than 900,000, which marks a substantial increase. There are many reasons behind why this consumer shift has occurred, from people becoming more environmentally conscious to preparations ahead of the 2035 ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel cars.
Another potential factor is the marked increase in charging infrastructure across the country.
Many people used to avoid EVs due to the lack of readily available charging points, creating a fear of the battery running out on long journeys.
In recent years, more and more public charging stations have become available across the UK, and while it’s still not perfect, it’s a significant improvement from previous years. Many public charging stations feature rapid chargers to allow batteries to get up to speed faster and allow more vehicles to use them.
As charging costs are inevitably a concern for drivers, in this article the team here at The Windscreen Company will take a look at the cost of charging EVs with rapid chargers.
If you’re an EV owner, there are two main charging options you’ll come across. These are home charging and public charging.
Let’s take a look at these options below:
Everyone who buys an EV will also purchase a home charging point for the vehicle. This means that the vehicle can be easily charged up at home when not in use.
These chargers will use your home’s electricity supply to charge the battery, with many people opting to charge their vehicles overnight so they’re ready for use the following day.
As well as charging at home, there are various public charging stations across the country. Usually, these are located in public places such as supermarket car parks, at petrol stations and motorway services.
This means that if you’re on a long journey or just notice your battery is running low when out and about, you can pull over and recharge in much the same way petrol and diesel owners refuel. More and more public charging infrastructure is being installed all the time to keep up with public demand.
The majority of these public charging stations will feature rapid or ultra-rapid chargers which recharge batteries at a faster rate. We’ll explore these chargers in greater detail in the sections below.
A rapid charger is a type of EV charger that can charge a battery at a faster rate than conventional chargers. Rapid charging is the fastest way to recharge an EV battery, and the majority of public chargers will be rapid or, even quicker, ultra-rapid chargers.
There has been some suggestion that consistent use of rapid chargers can cause faster battery degradation, but research shows that this is minimal. In fact, public rapid charging points only allow you to charge your vehicle’s battery to 80% capacity specifically to protect the health of your battery.
With energy prices on the rise and the cost of living crisis meaning people everywhere are tightening their belts, the cost of using EV chargers is always a concern.
While home chargers will use your home’s electricity supply and will contribute to your overall utility bill, the cost of using public chargers can be a bit more vague.
Every charging station will have slightly different rates depending on a variety of factors, but the RAC has compiled data to calculate the average cost.
Due to the fact that rapid chargers only allow charging up to 80%, the RAC have calculated the average cost of charging an EV from 0% to 80% when the vehicle features a 64kWh battery (the most common EV battery).
According to the data, it’ll set you back £36.56 when using a rapid charger or £38.30 when using an ultra-rapid charger. It’s also worth noting that some public charging points offer off-peak rates that may be cheaper.
With this in mind, it’s almost always cheaper to charge at home.
This is because while your home chargers will take longer than rapid chargers, they will fully charge the battery to 100% rather than the 80% mark of rapid chargers. In fact, RAC’s data discovered that as of October 2023, it costs an average of £17.28 to charge a 64kWh from 0% to 100% demonstrating how it is far more cost-effective.
Here at The Windscreen Company, we’ve spent more than two decades providing leading windscreen services to every type of vehicle. This includes a quality electric and hybrid car windscreen repair and replacement offering that will safely fix any damage your windscreen has suffered. We operate across the West Midlands and the South East, so get in touch with our team today to find out more.
The Windscreen Company, has over 20 years of experience in windscreen repair and replacement. Since 1998, they have been at the forefront of industry innovation, leveraging the latest technology to ensure customer safety and satisfaction.
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