Electric vehicle warning

Sir,

I am a GP in one of Argyll’s rural practices. Last week I was having a busy morning so was a little later than usual getting back to my car, which I had left charging at an electric charge point.

That evening I was surprised to see that I’d been charged £30 over and above the normal charging rate per KwH.

I checked through the Argyll and Bute website and discovered there is now an overstay charge – hence the surcharge.

I had had an email back in April saying that Argyll and Bute Council would now be charging users at its charge points – the cost being 25p per KwH. Fair enough.

However, there was no mention of a penalty for overstaying.

Nor is there any notice at the charge points themselves, save a tiny notice stating ‘charges apply’.

Those seeking to charge in Argyll and Bute are additionally confused by the lack of clarity over what type of charge point is being used. Is it a 50 Kw, 22Kw or a 7 Kw? There is no notice on the chargers.

This is important because the overstay timings vary according to the differing units.

When I buy petrol at a filling station I clearly

know what the charges are. When I buy a ticket at a parking meter, I buy a ticket and know exactly how long I am able to park there.

But it seems that for electric vehicles you have to search the internet to find out the rules and in my village there is no wifi and I cannot get 4G on my phone.

Dr Carina Spink, Muasdale.