New laws designed to help electric car drivers charge their vehicles at home will be introduced today (December 30). The latest Schedule 1: Security compliance regulations aim to cover cybersecurity of home charging devices.
The new regulations hope to ensure that any charge point should provide appropriate protection to the electricity system. They also aim to protect the relevant charge point and the personal data of the owner, reports The Express.
From tomorrow (New Year's Eve), any installers wishing to fit non-compliant EV chargers will have to seek approval from the Office for Product Safety and Standards. In a bid to protect people's personal data, owners must ensure that the charge point has a unique passport and is not set by them.
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The Government says that charge points must have smart functionality in order to comply with the new regulations. This includes the ability to send and receive information and the ability to respond to signals to increase the rate or time at which electricity flows through the charge point.
It should also have a measuring system, to calculate the electricity imported or exported and the time the charging lasts. This information must be visible to the owner.
Smart chargers allow drivers to select when they can charge their car to ensure it has sufficient energy levels for when they need it. This is useful if they have an EV-friendly home tariff, allowing them to save hundreds of pounds per year.
David Watson, CEO of Ohme (one of the UK’s largest home EV charge providers), said: “Whether you’re an electric vehicle driver looking to buy a new smart charger, an electrical retailer offering them for sale or an installer, from the end of this year all new EV chargers are legally-bound to meet these regulations.
“For total peace of mind, drivers, retailers and installers should ensure that they’re buying a product that meets the latest regulations and ask to see the Statement of Compliance for the charger to confirm that.”
Ohme’s smart chargers enable drivers to take advantage of all the times of low-price charging. It's app allows people to set set the Home Pro to charge their vehicle when prices drop below a set point.
Recent data from Zap-Map found that a third of EV owners also own a petrol or diesel car. However, electric is becoming more popular with a growing number of EVs on the road.
For commuters, 71 percent of motorists use their EVs, and even for journeys of over 100 miles, 67 percent of drivers will stick with electric. With these longer journeys, many drivers will prefer to have the option to charge when they get home, rather than waiting at a public charging station.
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