TL;DR:
- The OZEV Workplace Charging Scheme gives businesses up to £350 per socket (maximum 40 sockets) toward the cost of installing EV charge points — the grant is applied at source, so you pay the net cost upfront
- Installation costs typically run £800–£1,500 per socket all-in before the grant, depending on the distance from the electrical intake and the number of sockets
- Businesses also benefit from 100% capital allowances on EV charging equipment in the first year, and employees can charge their personal EVs at work as a tax-free benefit if the charging is provided through employer infrastructure
Electric vehicle adoption among UK company car drivers is now the majority — over half of new company car orders are BEV or PHEV, driven by favourable benefit-in-kind rates. That shift puts real pressure on businesses to provide workplace charging infrastructure, both to attract and retain employees who drive EVs and to support fleet electrification.
This guide covers what it actually costs to install workplace charging, what the government grant covers, and the tax and operational considerations worth understanding before you start getting quotes.
The Workplace Charging Scheme (WCS) in 2026
The Workplace Charging Scheme is administered by OZEV (Office for Zero Emission Vehicles) and provides a contribution of up to £350 per socket, with a maximum of 40 sockets per applicant. The grant is applied by the installer — you pay the net cost and they reclaim from OZEV, so there’s no waiting for a rebate.
Who qualifies:
- UK businesses, charities, and public sector organisations
- Small accommodation businesses (B&Bs, hotels, self-catering) with their own off-street parking
- You must have dedicated off-street parking available to employees or fleet vehicles
What the grant covers:
- Purchase and installation of charge point units
- Electrical installation work associated with the charge points
- Any civil work directly associated (not general car park resurfacing)
What it doesn’t cover:
- Upgrading the site’s electrical supply (if you need a new substation or distribution board upgrade, this is a separate cost)
- Multiple-site applications are permitted, but each site needs a separate application
The voucher is valid for 180 days. Once your installer is registered with OZEV, the application process is straightforward — your installer handles most of it.
What Installation Actually Costs
The grant covers a meaningful portion of cost for straightforward installs, but the total varies considerably based on site conditions.
Key cost drivers:
- Distance from distribution board to parking: The single biggest variable. A charge point 5 metres from the intake is dramatically cheaper than one 50 metres away requiring cable trenching across a car park.
- Number of sockets: Per-unit cost drops significantly at scale. Installing 10 sockets at once costs much less per socket than 10 sequential single installs.
- Civil work: Trenching tarmac, laying conduit, reinstating surfaces — these costs add up quickly for car parks with no existing cable runs.
- Load management hardware: Smart load balancing hardware (to prevent overloading the incoming supply when multiple vehicles charge simultaneously) adds cost upfront but is often essential and saves on supply upgrade costs.
Rough cost ranges (before grant):
| Scenario | Cost per socket |
|---|---|
| Simple install, near intake, 1–2 sockets | £1,200–£1,500 |
| Moderate cable run, 5–10 sockets | £900–£1,200 |
| Large install with load management, 20+ sockets | £700–£900 |
After the £350 grant, effective costs drop to roughly £550–£1,150 per socket in most scenarios.
Tax Benefits Worth Understanding
Capital Allowances — First Year Allowance (FYA): Electric vehicle charge points qualify for 100% First Year Allowance, meaning businesses can deduct the full cost from taxable profits in the year of purchase. This applies to the net cost after the grant, and it applies regardless of the size of the business. For a company paying 25% corporation tax, a £10,000 installation saves £2,500 in tax in year one.
Employee charging as a tax-free benefit: HMRC currently treats electricity provided to employees to charge their personal electric vehicles at work as a tax-free benefit — provided the charging is made available through employer-provided charge points and is available to all employees generally (not just as a perk for specific individuals). This means an employee who charges at work pays no income tax on the electricity cost, and the employer pays no Class 1A National Insurance on it. The rules here are worth double-checking with an accountant as the position has been refined over the years, but the current treatment is favourable.
Company car P11D for charging at home: A separate but related point — where the company pays for electricity used by an employee to charge a company EV at home, this is handled through HMRC’s approved mileage advisory rates (MAR) for EVs (currently 7p per mile) rather than a taxable benefit.
Smart Charging and Load Management
Installing dumb 7kW sockets across a car park can easily overload a standard commercial electrical supply once several vehicles are charging simultaneously. Smart charge points with load management software balance demand across the site and can be configured to shift charging to off-peak periods.
Features to look for in smart workplace charging:
RFID access control: Ensures only authorised users can charge, essential for cost allocation if employees are reimbursed for home charging but workplace charging is a separate pool.
Cost allocation and reporting: Systems like Ohme for Business, Wallbox for Business, or Rolec EVISION provide per-session data showing which employee charged how much — essential for accurate P11D reporting or internal cost allocation.
Dynamic load management: Real-time balancing of available capacity across all sockets, preventing grid connection upgrades in many scenarios. Chargers from vendors like ABB, ChargePoint, and Wallbox include this as standard in fleet configurations.
Smart tariff integration: In larger installations, smart charge points can integrate with half-hourly metering and flexible tariffs to shift charging to periods when electricity is cheapest.
Practical Steps Before Getting Quotes
Check your electrical supply capacity: Have an electrician assess your existing Distribution Network Operator (DNO) connection and distribution board. Supply upgrades (requesting additional capacity from the DNO) can take 6–18 months and cost several thousand pounds — knowing early whether you’ll need this shapes your timeline and budget.
Decide on AC vs DC fast charging: Workplace parking scenarios almost always suit AC 7kW or 22kW chargers (overnight or all-day dwell time). DC rapid chargers (50kW+) are unnecessary for most workplace scenarios and significantly more expensive to install and maintain.
Get at least three quotes from OZEV-registered installers: The WCS requires installation by an OZEV-registered installer. The Office for Zero Emission Vehicles maintains a register. Installation quality and price vary significantly — three competitive quotes is the minimum.
Consider future-proofing: Installing cable runs and conduit for additional sockets at the time of the initial installation costs very little extra and can dramatically reduce the cost of expanding later. If you expect EV adoption among employees to grow, lay for twice your current need.
Workplace charging is one of the more straightforward employer benefits to implement — the grant reduces the financial risk, the tax treatment is favourable, and the operational benefits (a charging point is a genuine recruitment and retention asset for employees with EVs) are immediate.