Best Value UK Tarriff for Charging

[Stewartt997]

Hello - hoping to receive delivery of my ST 4S in the autumn and with the price of electricity spiralling in the UK just wondered if anyone has found a particular supplier who looks better value for charging from home? They all seem to be quite similar but thought I'd check on advice from those who've had to look at this sooner than me. Thanks.

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[mutanthands]

Who are you with at the moment?
Octopus does an EV tariff (7.5p/kWh between 00:30 - 04:30, 33.75p/ kWh other times).

However, the general advice at the moment is not to change tariff. If you're on a fixed tariff, wait until it runs out, then let it go to the supplier's default as you'll be protected by the Energy Price Cap.

 

[rb33gl]

We're on Octopus too (transferred when Avro went bust) and we're on 20p between midnight to 7am and 30p at other times.
In my view, their off peak 4 hour cheap rate is pretty useless, as you can only get 28kwh into the car - about 80 miles. At least I can get 140 miles on a single charge.

 

[mutanthands]

In my view, their off peak 4 hour cheap rate is pretty useless, as you can only get 28kwh into the car - about 80 miles. At least I can get 140 miles on a single charge.

I wouldn't say it's useless, just depends on your personal use case.
I rarely do more than 80 miles in a day (work commute.etc), so for me, it would work out pretty well.

 

[Fish Fingers]

I am on Octopus Go.

Currently 5.5p cheap rate (00.30-04.30) and about 16p full rate.
Pretty sure it's ending soon though and we will be tipped onto a new tariff...?

The Go tariff works well for me.

I work from home a lot and some days don't use my car at all, or use wife's car.
So I could for example give it a 4 hour cheap rate charge on day 1 - not use it - then do the same on day 2 etc.

I tend to charge (ťo 85%) any time it drops below about 75% nowadays and it's nearly always at cheap rate.

 

[rb33gl]

I wouldn't say it's useless, just depends on your personal use case.
I rarely do more than 80 miles in a day (work commute.etc), so for me, it would work out pretty well.

Point taken. I only do about 100 miles a week, but frequent charging does become a bit of a faff - especially as I'm competing with my wife's Audi that only has a total capacity of 13kwh. As this is only good for 35-40 miles, we seem to have to charge it every night.

 

[Stewartt997]

Thanks I'm with Octopus, but don't have a smart meter which is what they require for the nigh time EV rates. I'm always rather suspicious of the smart meters and non-compatibility between suppliers but even a 4 hour nightly cheap top up is worth considering.

 

[kl98cwg]

I am on Octopus Go.

Currently 5.5p cheap rate (00.30-04.30) and about 16p full rate.
Pretty sure it's ending soon though and we will be tipped onto a new tariff...?

The Go tariff works well for me.

I work from home a lot and some days don't use my car at all, or use wife's car.
So I could for example give it a 4 hour cheap rate charge on day 1 - not use it - then do the same on day 2 etc.

I tend to charge (ťo 85%) any time it drops below about 75% nowadays and it's nearly always at cheap rate.

I’m on the same tariff and that’s exactly what I do - it makes the Taycan so cheap to run!
To get the Octopus Go tariff you have to sign up to one of their standard tariffs first and then switch, but I found it very quick and easy.

 

[Lars]

Hello - hoping to receive delivery of my ST 4S in the autumn and with the price of electricity spiralling in the UK just wondered if anyone has found a particular supplier who looks better value for charging from home? They all seem to be quite similar but thought I'd check on advice from those who've had to look at this sooner than me. Thanks.

If you are not with Octopus already you will need to spend some time waiting to talk to them on the phone as you can't join Octopus Go in with out them vetting you first. The rate you can get as a "new customer" is 35.11p Day and 7.5p night (00.30 - 04.30) prices inc VAT. There are other historical rates etc that may be available to existing customers. I did a lot of research and plugged my data in to a simple spreadsheet to confirm it was worth changing.
I got V2 Smart Meter last Oct in advance and had my meter tails and CU upgraded to have the right feed to allow a 100AMP fuse (which I already had but my tails were 16mm not 25mm2) this ensures best possible charging rate at peak times. All V2 Smart meters are interchangeable so dont worry about that.
I did all of the above (changed to Go) and I charge for the 4 hrs at night as my exiting supplier didn't offer as good a rate when I did the maths.
If you do decide on Octopus Go make sure you get a recommendation code from someone (me?) as you will get a share of £100 for joining. helps with all extra with charging up during the day when you get your car because you are so existed about driving everywhere!

 

[Fish Fingers]

Slight side issue.....

Octopus are an amazing utility company.
Customer service levels are superb, as is the IT.

I just went to look at my account after viewing this thread and it really is very user friendly.

 

[Southern Rain]

I’m (at last) apparently getting my RWD in October and Octopus looks like the way to go. The daily rate is more than I currently pay (28.41p) but I’m guessing the reduced rate after 12:30 will make up for that.

Has anyone got any suggestions for the best EV home charger to take advantage of the night time rate?

I am considering Andersen or Zappi…anyone got any advice?

 

[kl98cwg]

I’m (at last) apparently getting my RWD in October and Octopus looks like the way to go. The daily rate is more than I currently pay (28.41p) but I’m guessing the reduced rate after 12:30 will make up for that.

Has anyone got any suggestions for the best EV home charger to take advantage of the night time rate?

I am considering Andersen or Zappi…anyone got any advice?

I picked an Ohme after going around this loop 18 months ago before taking delivery. However, trying to use it to control the charging results in errors and to avoid this I control everything through the car instead - take a look at this thread:

https://www.taycanforum.com/forum/threads/fixed-charging-period-with-octopus-go.7582/#post-110402

I don’t believe a different charger will make any difference (the first post in that thread mentions the Andersen) and with hingsight I would have just wall-mounted the Porsche Mobile Charger Connect (PMCC) that came bundled with the car (I don’t know if it is still bundled in but I’m sure you’ll know what’s in your order!). It’s a heavy unit that I carry that around in the boot - it can also be used to charge from a 13A socket so could be useful in an emergency, but so far I’ve never used it.

 

[Lars]

I’m (at last) apparently getting my RWD in October and Octopus looks like the way to go. The daily rate is more than I currently pay (28.41p) but I’m guessing the reduced rate after 12:30 will make up for that.

Has anyone got any suggestions for the best EV home charger to take advantage of the night time rate?

I am considering Andersen or Zappi…anyone got any advice?

Its a simple maths equation as you should be able to get your existing usage (day and night) and plug that in. You will have to estimate your vehicle consumption based on your milage. I dont expect to do more than 8k miles PA short journeys and odd extended journey. If its occasional use then you can restrict charging to the hours of low rate, you will get 'charging error' notification , as you should if power is cut, but thats all. Its works for me (on an Andersen). I sometimes dont restrict it if I am off somewhere. I was always told the key to EVs is to always be charging when you can (at the lowest rate) so you always take advantage of it. That was good advice.

 

[Fish Fingers]

I was always told the key to EVs is to always be charging when you can (at the lowest rate) so you always take advantage of it. That was good advice.

Always Be Charging (ABC)
I was told that too.
Very good advice.
?

 

[MDL22]

Just completed my first year with Octopus go Faster, and very pleased.
I have EV (Taycan CT Turbo) and Solar panels / Tesla Powerwall set up. works a dream.
If anyone is considering the move, here's a link to get a £50 credit thats a fair few miles on Octopus. It all helps!

https://share.octopus.energy/funny-jade-51

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