Electric Vehicles For Your Business Needs
Updated: Oct 12, 2021
Green Energy that is, not the currency kind. In one of the most fundamental shifts of our generation, the focus on zero-emission infrastructure is well and truly picking up steam.
Is your business ready? If not, you may want to read on.
Electric Vehicles, UK Climate Commitments, And You
It isn't since the emergence of the Internet that a market has been so full of untapped potential. And if that sounds somewhat over-excited, so be it.
Because since the UK government decided that by 2030 all vehicles need to have a "significant zero-emissions capability" and by 2035 need to be "100% zero-emission", the market for reliable, accessible, and user-friendly Electric Vehicles (EV) has exploded.
The Climate Change Act (2008) committed the UK to reduce 80% of greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, and then in 2019 the 2050 Target Amendment Order 2019 was passed, changing that from 80% to a crisp 100% reduction.
And because of this, there have been inroads made into changing the UK slowly over towards having charger points available throughout the UK, and a push on encouraging companies to both innovate in the market, and for businesses to embrace EV into their companies.
You can check out the House of Commons paper on Electric Vehicles and Infrastructure here.
What this means for your business is that eventually, you will have to look into providing cleaner travel options for your company vehicles, and the sooner you start, the better off you will be.
Thankfully, changing needn’t be the massive pain it could be; the choices for EV are ever-expanding, costs are going down, albeit the initial purchase is slightly more expensive than a standard petrol vehicle.
There are dozens of companies that install chargers both at business, and at home, and dealing with how you pay for the electricity for the vehicles, once a bit of a nightmare, is now becoming easier too.
Having chargers at your place of business, identifying and quantifying expense is relatively straightforward, but what about the vehicles that employees take home with them?
Advisory fuel rates (AFR’s), a complicated beast at best, unfathomable at worst, were introduced in 2018 for employers to reimburse employees up to 4p per mile for the electricity used to charge their vehicle.
But what if the employees' energy provider charges more than this? Who pays the difference? Imagine telling your staff that they can charge their shiny new EV at home every evening, and you’ll gladly pay them 4p, only for them to realize that they are paying 17p for every mile of electricity!
You can easily get mired down in the intricacies of all of the legislation, best practices because all of this is so new, companies don't have the experience of what to do first, and so invariably, do nothing.
As a nation, and to be honest, as a planet, we have been geared towards fossil fuel consumption for all of our energy needs since the first neolithic man poked the ground with a stick, and oil bubbled out. We know how petrol works, it’s comfortable. Poisonous and damaging, but comfortable.
It's a hard habit to break. But break it we must, because fossil fuels are running out, oh yes, and the gas guzzlers it runs emit greenhouse gases, which are rapidly turning our planet into a toilet bowl.
All of which leads us nicely back to the relatively (for now) untapped potential of Electric Vehicles, because whether you think global warming is a myth or not (hint: it's not a myth), within a decade your company vehicles better be on board the green train.
EV Needn’t Be Difficult To Embrace
Actually, transitioning to EV doesn’t have to be that hard, or complicated, the government is jumping on board the jolly green bandwagon, as I stated above, companies are out there to take the stress and confusion out of going electric too.
Just pop into your local dealership and you can see the options available for vehicles, companies such as evchargers.co.uk can deal with your charger requirements, even a local electrician can purchase and install your chargers for you.
For your electricity bills, both at business and at employee homes, I would suggest looking no further than Mina. They can smooth your transition by dealing with individual energy suppliers, paying them directly, thus avoiding the advisory fuel rates, everything you need to pay in one invoice.
Mina also provides access to chargepass, which is the largest fast-charging network in the UK. Suddenly you are getting 100% accurate charging costs for all of your company vehicles, with none of the associated stress.
Make the most of the UK government grants for electric vehicles, of up to 35% (up to a maximum of £2500 for cars, £3000 for small vans, and £6000 for large vans),
Add that to the fact that recharging an EV can be up to 58% cheaper than filling a petrol vehicle, and the assumptions that transitioning to EV isn't cost-effective just don't hold up to scrutiny.
Taxis and large trucks (from 2500kg to 12000kg gross vehicle weight) are not forgotten either, and a taxi can get up to 20% (up to £7500) as a grant.
Companies with multiple large vehicles can get up to 20% of the purchase price, up to a maximum of £16,000, and that holds for the first 250 vehicles bought.
After that, it drops to £6000 as a maximum per purchase.
See more on grants and a list of those vehicles eligible for an EV grant here.
The potential upside doesn't just stop at the dealership either:
Recharging your shiny new fleet of vehicles is also cost-effective, as much as 58% cheaper, which is no small thing over time.
Maintenence is cheaper, EV has fewer moving parts, less wear, and tear
No oil changes
Carbon footprint, zero emissions, zero annual tonnage of greenhouse gases
Green business, customers will be comforted knowing you operate an eco-friendly service
Over 350,000 new charging points will be created at homes in the UK in the next 5 years
In the next few years, there will be a huge influx of Electric Vehicle related services appearing on the market, ranging from payment methods, charger locators, suppliers, EV repairs, and more.
You should expect in busier cities like London to find EV chargers in lamposts at the side of the street, there will be software upgrades, you could see your car actually knowing it`s your car, so that when you plug it into a public charger, you don't pay there and then, it knows it's you, and who to charge for it!
Many hotel chains have already cottoned on to the benefits of EV, and have chargers installed at many of their hotels for customer use, as do the majority of motorway service stations which allow for rapid charging to top up on those long journeys.
With a typical charge time of 8 hours for a standard 60kwh battery on a 7kw charge point, that's fine for plugging after work when you get home for the evening.
For those in need of a speedier charging experience, a 50kw rapid charger can give around 100 miles of charge in less than 30 minutes.
Think of your new EV like a mobile phone, charge it overnight when you are finished for the day, but while out and about, top it up in small doses.
EV Is Going To Happen
As someone who feels strongly about curbing and eventually eradicating greenhouse gases, perhaps I am somewhat biased.
Maybe most people in their daily lives don't feel that strongly either way, and it is understandable, given the Global Pandemic, that businesses are wary of spending outside their comfort zone at present.
But one thing to bear in mind is this; it's happening regardless, soon enough you won't be able to buy a new petrol car or van. And they don't make 'em like they used to! You don't get 20 years of life from your car anymore.
So why not look into the companies above? Speak to your dealership, they can discuss vehicle options with you, speak to evchargers about which charger is best for your business. Get in touch with Mina to ensure your fleet, your staff, and your electricity bills are dealt with accurately and efficiently.
Your business WILL be going EV at some point, and the sooner you do, and the quicker you embrace it, and just as importantly let your CUSTOMERS see it, the better your company will be.
If you enjoyed today's post, feel free to drop me a message via email at copywriterchap@copywriterchap.com, or get in touch on Twitter @CopyWriterChap.