Public charge points overtake petrol pumps in the UK
Analysis by the Department for Transport has concluded that there are now more public charge points than petrol pumps in the UK.
This comes as a tax tribunal has ruled that a domestic 5p VAT rate should apply to public charge networks instead of the 20p currently imposed.
DfT figures found that there were 116,052 public charge points in the UK at the start of the year compared to an estimated 60,802 fuel pumps.
These figures are based on official statistics on the UK’s EV charging infrastructure as well as a report from the Petrol Retailers Association and research carried out by Deloitte on behalf of the RAC.
Right direction
Vicky Edmonds, chief executive officer of EVA England, said: “This milestone shows we’re genuinely moving in the right direction and building the charging network that drivers need to make the switch to electric with confidence.
“More public chargers than fuel pumps is not just a nice benchmark, it reflects huge progress on the ground that EV drivers are feeling.”
Meanwhile, a UK court has ruled that VAT imposed on public charge points should be 5p instead of 20p, after community charge point operator Charge My Street challenged the higher rate.
Daniel Heery, director at Charge My Street, said:
“Our mission has always been to make neighbourhood charging accessible to everyone, and this ruling supports that mission. Lower VAT on charging improves fairness and helps accelerate the shift to cleaner transport for all.”
