How to Pay Less to Charge Your EV at Home: The Complete UK Guide

Imagine plugging in your electric car every night and watching your energy bill climb — not because EVs are inherently expensive to run, but simply because you're charging at the wrong time, on the wrong tariff, or with the wrong equipment. For millions of UK drivers who've made the switch to electric, home charging represents both the biggest opportunity to save money and, ironically, one of the most commonly mismanaged expenses.

A recent guide from Autocar shines a light on practical ways EV owners can slash their home charging costs — and it's prompted a deeper question worth exploring: why are so many drivers leaving significant savings on the table, and what does the regulatory landscape actually mean for your wallet?

The Core Problem: Most EV Owners Are on the Wrong Tariff

Here's the uncomfortable truth. The vast majority of UK households are still on a standard variable electricity tariff — the kind that charges you the same rate whether you plug in at 2pm or 2am. For petrol drivers, that's fine. For EV owners, it's like filling up at the most expensive forecourt every single day when a cheaper one is right around the corner.

The average standard variable rate in the UK currently sits around 24–28p per kWh following Ofgem's price cap adjustments. At that rate, charging a typical 60kWh battery from empty to full costs roughly £14–£17. That sounds reasonable until you realise that EV-specific overnight tariffs can bring that cost down to as little as £5–£8 for the same charge.

The difference is substantial — potentially £500 to £800 per year for a driver covering average UK mileage.

What the Autocar Guide Covers — and What It Doesn't

Autocar's practical guide rightly highlights four key strategies:

• Switching to an EV-specific time-of-use tariff
• Using smart chargers to schedule overnight charging
• Exporting solar energy directly to your vehicle
• Choosing the right home charger hardware

These are all solid, actionable steps. But there's considerably more context behind each one — particularly around the regulatory framework that governs energy pricing, smart charging mandates, and your rights as a consumer.

Why It Matters: The UK's Electricity Pricing Landscape

The UK energy market is regulated by Ofgem, which sets the price cap for default tariffs but does not cap specialist EV tariffs. This means energy suppliers have significant freedom to design overnight EV rates — and competition between them is driving genuinely attractive deals.

Tariffs such as Octopus Energy's Intelligent Octopus Go, OVO Drive Anytime, and British Gas Electric Driver are specifically engineered for EV owners. Intelligent Octopus Go, for instance, offers rates as low as 7p per kWh during off-peak hours (typically midnight to 5am or 6am), compared to standard daytime rates of around 24p.

Crucially, these tariffs are only accessible if you have a smart meter installed — something the government has been pushing hard under its Smart Meter Implementation Programme. As of 2025, approximately 68% of UK homes have a smart meter, meaning a significant minority of EV owners still can't access the best tariffs without first arranging an installation.

The Legal Angle: Smart Charging Regulations You Need to Know

This is where things get particularly interesting — and where many EV owners are unaware of their obligations and rights.

Under the Electric Vehicles (Smart Charge Points) Regulations 2021, which came into force in June 2022, all new home and workplace EV charge points sold in Great Britain must be "smart" by default. This legislation, introduced under powers in the Energy Act 2013, mandates that:

• New charge points must be capable of receiving and responding to signals to shift charging times
• They must have default off-peak charging settings built in
• They must be capable of communicating with energy systems and smart meters
• Suppliers must ensure charge points can be remotely updated

This is significant. It means that if you've purchased a home charger since June 2022, it is legally required to have smart scheduling capabilities. If your installer or supplier hasn't explained how to use them, that's a failing on their part — not yours.

What this means practically: You have the right to ask your charge point manufacturer or energy supplier to explain how to activate and configure smart charging schedules. If your charge point was sold as compliant with the 2021 Regulations but lacks these features, you may have grounds for a complaint to the manufacturer or, ultimately, to the Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS), which enforces these rules.

What Drivers Should Know: Practical Steps to Cut Costs

Here's a consolidated breakdown of what you should actually do:

1. Get a Smart Meter First

Contact your energy supplier and request a smart meter installation — it's free. Without one, you cannot access time-of-use tariffs and your smart charger's scheduling features may be limited.

2. Switch to an EV-Specific Tariff

Compare the following tariffs specifically designed for EV owners:

• Octopus Intelligent Go — requires a compatible smart charger (Ohme, Hypervolt, etc.)
• OVO Drive Anytime — offers a separate EV meter rate
• British Gas Electric Driver — competitive overnight rates
• E.ON Next Drive — worth comparing if you're already an E.ON customer

Use comparison tools like Uswitch or EV Tariff Comparison to find the best current deal. Don't assume loyalty to your current supplier is rewarded — it rarely is.

3. Use Your Charger's Scheduling Function

Every smart charge point sold in the UK since June 2022 must have scheduling built in. Access it via the manufacturer's app (Ohme, Wallbox, Zappi, etc.) and set your charge window to align with your tariff's off-peak hours. Most apps also let you set a target charge level — useful for preserving battery longevity by not always charging to 100%.

4. Consider Solar Integration

If you have or are considering solar panels, a solar-integrated charger such as the myenergi Zappi can divert surplus generation directly to your EV during daylight hours — effectively giving you free miles on sunny days. Under the Smart Export Guarantee (SEG), introduced in January 2020, energy suppliers with more than 150,000 customers are legally required to offer you a payment for energy you export back to the grid. However, using that energy to charge your car first is almost always more financially beneficial than exporting it.

5. Check Your Charger's OZEV Grant Eligibility

The Electric Vehicle Homecharge Scheme (EVHS) was replaced in April 2022 by a more targeted grant. As of 2025, a £350 grant is still available for eligible properties — specifically flats and rental accommodation — through the Office for Zero Emission Vehicles (OZEV). Homeowners with driveways no longer qualify for the standard grant, but landlords and flat-dwellers should check eligibility before purchasing a charger.

Looking Ahead: Where Home EV Charging Is Heading

The economics of home EV charging are only going to improve — but not automatically. The government's Review of Electricity Market Arrangements (REMA), currently ongoing, is examining how to better align electricity pricing with renewable generation. If successful, this could make off-peak periods even cheaper as wind and solar output peaks.

There's also growing pressure on Ofgem to address the VAT disparity between home and public charging. Currently, home electricity attracts 5% VAT, while public rapid chargers attract 20% — a significant and widely criticised imbalance that disproportionately penalises drivers without home charging access. While this isn't directly relevant to home charging costs, it underscores the broader policy environment in which these decisions are being made.

Meanwhile, Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) technology — which allows your EV battery to export power back to your home or the grid during peak periods — is moving from pilot schemes toward mainstream availability. When it arrives at scale, the economics of home EV ownership will shift dramatically. Early adopters with compatible vehicles (currently the Nissan Leaf and select Kia and Hyundai models support bidirectional charging) can already participate in trials.

The Bottom Line

Owning an EV and continuing to charge it on a standard electricity tariff is, to put it bluntly, a costly oversight. The regulatory framework is already in place — smart charging mandates, time-of-use tariff availability, smart meter rollouts — to make cheaper home charging accessible to most UK drivers.

The savings are real, the steps are straightforward, and the technology is already sitting in your garage. All that's needed is the awareness to act on it. Switch your tariff, configure your smart charger, and if you have solar panels, integrate them properly. Done right, home charging your EV can cost less than a daily coffee — and that's a running cost even the most committed petrol loyalist would struggle to argue with.