EV charger grant: who actually qualifies for £500 — and who gets nothing
Every current EV charger grant pays 75% of the cost up to £500 per socket and closes on 31 March 2027. Here is the part the installer websites bury: if you own and live in a house, there is no grant for you. Not a reduced one — none. That has been true since the Homecharge Scheme closed to owner-occupiers in April 2022, and it applies to most people who search this.
The three schemes, kept separate
Conflating these is the most common error in EV charger marketing. They share a rate and a closing date and nothing else. All three rose from £350 to £500 per socket on 1 April 2026, so any page still quoting £350 as current is out of date.
| Scheme | Worth | Who can claim |
|---|---|---|
| EV chargepoint grant (renters & flat owners) | 75% up to £500 one grant per applicant | You own and live in a flat, or you rent any kind of home (including shared ownership). Needs designated private off-street parking and proof of legal entitlement to the space, plus an eligible vehicle. |
| Residential landlord grant | 75% up to £500 per socket up to 200 sockets a year | Private landlords, right-to-manage companies, freeholders of multi-unit property, public sector, charities managing residential property, registered social housing providers, property management companies, Scottish property factors. Must be registered at Companies House or VAT registered. |
| Workplace Charging Scheme | 75% up to £500 per socket 40 sockets per applicant | Businesses, charities, public-sector organisations and small accommodation businesses, for staff or fleet use. |
Two details in that table are worth pulling out because they are routinely misreported. The Workplace cap of 40 sockets is per applicant across all sites, not per site — so a company with six depots shares one allowance of 40. And the landlord scheme's 200 sockets is per financial year, which makes it by far the largest of the three in total value, though funding is not available where installing the chargepoint was a mandatory requirement.
The £500 cap is not the same as £500
Because the grant is 75% up to £500, the cap only binds once the installed cost passes about £667. Below that you receive three-quarters of the cost, not the full £500:
| Installed cost | 75% of cost | You actually get | You pay |
|---|---|---|---|
| £500 | £375 | £375 | £125 |
| £667 | £500 | £500 — cap reached | £167 |
| £900 | £675 | £500 | £400 |
| £1,400 | £1,050 | £500 | £900 |
The practical consequence: past roughly £667 the grant is a flat £500 discount, so a more expensive installation is not "more grant-funded" — every extra pound is yours.
You do not claim it — the installer does
For the renters and flat owners grant, the OZEV-authorised installer applies the grant directly against your installation invoice. You pay the reduced figure and never make a claim. This is why the installer's OZEV authorisation matters more than the brand of charger: you cannot buy from whoever you like, pay in full, and reclaim afterwards. Confirm the installer is OZEV-authorised and the chargepoint is on the eligible list before you book.
What installation costs in West Essex
Typically £800–£1,500 all-in for a standard 7.4 kW single-phase unit. What moves it:
| Factor | Effect |
|---|---|
| Cable run from board to parking space | The biggest variable — a garage beside the meter is cheap; a driveway 20 m away with a path to cross is not |
| Consumer unit capacity | No spare way, or an old board, means a new way or a board change first — see consumer unit prices |
| Main fuse rating and existing load | Decides whether 7.4 kW is available without load management |
| Earthing arrangement | PME/TN-C-S supplies need an approved solution for outdoor charging |
| Whether the run crosses a driveway | Ducting and depth — see garage and outdoor electrics |
Load management, and when you need it
Most Harlow homes have an 80 A or 100 A main fuse. A 7.4 kW charger draws about 32 A on its own and an electric shower can take 40 A. Where total plausible demand exceeds the supply, the answer is usually a load-managing charger that throttles itself rather than an expensive supply upgrade — cheaper, quicker, and it keeps the DNO conversation simple. An installer who has not asked what else is on your supply has not sized the job.
If you own a house and get nothing
You are the majority of readers of this page, so it deserves a straight answer rather than being skipped. There is no home chargepoint grant available to you, and no amount of shopping around changes that — it is an eligibility rule, not an offer. What is worth doing instead:
- Get three quotes on the installation itself, since the price, not the grant, is your only variable.
- Check the cable run honestly before quoting — it is the biggest cost and the easiest thing to mis-scope.
- Ask about load management rather than assuming a supply upgrade.
- Look at your tariff. An EV tariff usually saves more per year than the grant would have been worth once.
- If you also run a business, the Workplace Charging Scheme is a separate route — see commercial electrical work.
- If you let a property, the landlord scheme applies to it even though nothing applies to your own house — and see landlord EICR duties for the inspection duties that come with it.
Before you book
- Establish which of the three schemes, if any, you are in.
- Confirm the installer is OZEV-authorised and the unit is an eligible chargepoint.
- Measure the run from the consumer unit to the parking space, along the actual route.
- Photograph the inside of your board — spare ways and age.
- Ask which DNO route applies, G98 or G99.
- Confirm the Part P certificate is included.
- Check registration on the Registered Competent Person Electrical register — OZEV authorisation and competent-person registration are different things, and you want both.
Get EV charger quotes in Harlow
Tell us whether you own or rent, whether it is a house or a flat, and roughly how far the parking space is from the consumer unit. Those three answers decide both your grant and your price.
What we will not do: we do not sell your details on, we do not add you to a marketing list, and we do not require a phone number. If you would rather not be called, leave the phone out — email is enough.