Electric car owners ripped off at roadside

Research has found electric car owners risk being ripped off by roadside chargers which cost eight times as much as those at people’s homes.

An investigation showed motorists were required to pay an average of almost £10 for 100 miles’ worth of “fuel” from public charging networks.

The study found one operator, Ionity, charged as much as £23 for the power needed to travel 100 miles, over eight times the cost of domestic chargers.

The findings were based on recharging a Nissan Leaf electric car and prompted claims drivers risked paying over the odds, particularly on long distance journeys.

Motoring groups called for more transparency around tariffs imposed by charge-point operators, some of which demand an additional connection fee.

Peugeot last week became the first car company to offer free charging as an incentive for drivers to go for electric cars. The French carmaker is offering a six-month subscription to Britain’s largest public charging system.

Electric car registrations more than doubled in Britain last year compared with the year before.

Steve Gooding, director of the RAC Foundation, who carried out the analysis, said: “The cost of recharging your battery-powered car can differ dramatically.”