EV chargers · Buying timing
The 100,000 EV month.
What it means for your charger.
UK electric car sales are closing in on 100,000 in a single month, a milestone that would have seemed far off only a few years ago. It is a genuine shift in how Britain drives. It also changes something less visible: the queue to get a home charger installed.
Why the surge is happening
There is no single cause. New models keep arriving at lower prices, used EVs are now genuinely affordable and salary sacrifice schemes have opened electric driving to people who could never justify a new car.
Fuel prices have done the rest. Plenty of drivers have simply had enough of watching their daily commute cost more through no fault of their own. Once the maths tips, people move quickly, and they are moving in large numbers at the same time.
What it means for installation companies
Most charger installation firms have been around for years. They have also lived through the stop-start nature of EV demand: a busy quarter, a quiet one, a grant change, another rush. That pattern makes it very hard to invest with confidence.
Like any trade, they cannot over-staff through the slow periods in hope of the busy ones. Qualified electricians and approved installers take time to recruit and train. When demand jumps, the diary fills before the headcount does.
They will recruit, and this time the demand looks like it is here to stay. But there is a lag, and during that lag lead times stretch.
What to do if you are going electric
First charger? Start with the 4-3-2-1 rule.
For most people reading this, the charger that comes with a new car is the first one they have owned. The 4-3-2-1 rule breaks the job into four parties, three connections, two experiences and one journey, so you know what to ask an installer before a quote ever lands.
- Start early: as soon as you are seriously looking at cars, start looking at chargers too. The charger chooser narrows it down in a few taps.
- Get the survey done: most installers can assess your home from photos before the car arrives, so the quote is ready when you are.
- Book the install before delivery: a confirmed date in the diary beats a frantic search the week the car lands.
- Have a short-term plan: if there is a gap, public charging and the occasional 3-pin top-up bridge it, but neither is a long-term substitute.
A word on patience
If you do hit a wait, it is worth remembering why. The installer you want is busy because lots of people trust them, not because they are disorganised. A good firm will tell you honestly how long the queue is and what you can do in the meantime.
Be wary of anyone who can start tomorrow when everyone else is quoting weeks. The who should install it guide covers the qualifications and paperwork to ask for.
The verdict
A record EV month is good news. It means more choice, better used prices and a charging network that keeps growing. The only trap is timing: treat the charger as part of buying the car, not an errand for afterwards, and the rush will not touch you.