Industry work together to focus on competence in Electric Vehicle charging
Following an audit of installations done under the Electric Vehicle Homecharge Scheme (EVHS), which provides grant funding of up to £350 towards the cost of installing Electric Vehicle (EV) charge points at domestic properties across the UK, the leading certification bodies for the electrical sector have come together to ensure lessons learntfrom the audit are used proactively to increase trust and confidence in the installation of EV charge points going forward.
The Electric Vehicle Homecharge schemes, which have funded the installation of more than 130,000 EV charge points, have been hugely influential in readying the UK electrical industry for the transition to electrification of the transport industry, it is vital that consumers have confidence in the quality of electrical installation work for EV chargepoints.
A number of steps are being taken to improve the levels of competency of members of electrical competent person schemes undertaking this work including embarking on a free, EV charge point specific,training programme including webinars and technical articles, and ensuring that any members who undertake this work have an EV charge point installation reviewed during their regular on-site technical assessments.
David Cowburn, Chief Operating Officer of NAPIT Registration and Stroma Certification commented:
“Electric Vehicle Charge Points will soon become the norm in the UK, but at the moment the technology is relatively new and evolving. We are grateful that the Government have shared their audit report with us and are working alongside us to educate and advance our installer networks knowledge.
“We are taking steps to make it easier to internally identify those members undertaking the installation of EV chargepoints through creating a new notification code on our software, so we can view an EV Charge point installation at our regular technical assessment.
“Registered electrical installers have a key role in delivering the scale of electrical vehicle use that will be necessary to reduce emissions from transport, and we aim to support them in meeting the challenge while providing the assurance of competence from our schemes that consumers are used to relying on.”
John O’Neill, Technical Director of NICEIC and ELECSA added:
“Registered electricians clearly have a major role to play in supporting the electrification of transport. As an industry we fully support and align with the Government’s position and want to work with contractors to ensure that consumer safety and trust in EV installation is retained.
“That is why, as on-site assessments resume,we will increase our surveillance of EV charging installations where it is clear that contractors are undertaking such work.
“We will continue to be both supportive and vigilant in the ongoing electrification of vehicles; working together with Government to nurture and strengthen this important part of the low carbon strategy.”
Article Published:
10 July 2020
competent person