British Gas leading the Charge with UK’s Cheapest EV Rate

02 February 2024

3 MINUTES

Smart Homes

Media Relations

Hive SmartCharge service pays you to plug in by offering the cheapest way to charge electric vehicles in the UK^[i] and the chance to get money off your energy bills.
Not only that, new customers of its Hive chargers^[ii] can also get a year’s worth of charging for free with FreeCharge^[iii].

British Gas now offers the cheapest way to charge your electric vehicle (EV) in the UK with its Hive SmartCharge service.

Hive SmartCharge users can benefit from a 4p/kWh saving on all their EV charging. Customers could benefit from up to £298 per year in savings^[iv] which we’ll automatically credit to your energy bill each month. All you need to do is enable the free SmartCharge feature in the Hive app, leave your EV plugged in and we’ll automatically charge your EV when energy is at its cheapest during that charging session. Combined with our Electric Driver tariff you could be paying an effective rate of just 4.95p/kWh for your EV charging if you plug in overnight between 12am – 5am.

Hive SmartCharge is available to British Gas electricity customers via the Hive app^[v] and could help cut transport costs for 2024 and beyond, while importantly also supporting the country’s EV transition and net zero ambitions.

If you’re yet to buy an EV charger, British Gas also has its market-leading FreeCharge promotion, which offers 12 months of free home charging (or 12 months’ free home charging) to new customers who buy one of their Hive EV chargers^[vi].

Kim Royds, Director of Mobility, Centrica New Business & Net Zero said: “We’re committed to making the transition to net zero simple and affordable and electric vehicles play a key part in this. Through our innovative SmartCharge offering, we’re helping EV owners take charge of their energy bills and access the cheapest EV charging rate on the market while also helping manage the demand on the grid."

“We’re committed to making the transition to net zero simple and affordable and electric vehicles play a key part in this."

Kim Royds, Director of Mobility, Centrica New Business & Net Zero

SmartCharge

SmartCharge provides EV drivers with cheaper energy by working out the best times to charge your vehicle. The longer a car is plugged in, the more you can save; if your EV is plugged in for six hours or more, we’ll credit you 4p for every kWh of charge you use and 2p for every kWh if your car is plugged in for less than six hours.

Hive’s SmartCharge is the perfect way to save costs on EV charging this year while also using cleaner energy sources while the grid is in less demand.

FreeCharge

With our FreeCharge offer, customers will benefit from up to 8,000 miles of free EV charging.

The offer is available to new and existing British Gas electricity customers who have a smart meter and purchase one of Hive’s EV Chargers.

Chargers can be ordered with or without installation by British Gas, either through Hive or one of its partners including Amazon, Costco, Screwfix, Toolstation and City Plumbing Supplies. Customers don’t need a specific tariff and for customers that don’t yet have a smart meter, we’ll even install one for free^[vii].

For more information, please visit hivehome.com and britishgas.co.uk.

Notes to Editors:

[i] Based on electricity prices of 29/01/2024. When you plug in your EV for 6 hours or more covering the period of 12am to 5am, you will qualify for a 4p discount off your EV tariff night rate of 8.95p/kWh for all electrical consumption. 4p/kWh discount also applies at any other time of day on any other BG electricity tariff if EV is left plugged in for 6 hours or more.

^[ii]Offer limited up to 5,000 FreeCharge-eligible sales.

^[iii]Year's free charging claim and 8,000 miles fair usage cap are based on gov.uk National Travel Survey (NTS 0901), showing average UK driver annual mileage of 6,600 miles in 2022. 8,000 miles fair usage cap is approximate, based on an actual consumption cap of 2,290kWh and an assumed EV efficiency of 3.5 miles per kWh. Efficiency differs depending on multiple factors, such as vehicle model, driving conditions and vehicle configuration.

^[iv] Based on maximum credit-earnings made by existing SmartCharge users over three months of actual performance data, then estimated on a pro-rata basis for one year of credits.

^[v] SmartCharge is available to people today that have;