Believ Launches Member Pricing Scheme Amid Rising Energy Prices
(March, 2022) Public Charge Point Operator (CPO), Believ, has launched a new membership plan to help shield the most frequent Electric Vehicle (EV) users from the cost-of-living crisis driven by the increase in wholesale energy prices.
From March 22nd, for a £5 monthly fee, members will be able to charge their vehicles from 38p/kWh, whilst the ‘Pay as You Go’ rates will increase to 43p/kWh. Members will avoid the £1.50 connection fee, which means that frequent users of the Believ network will save money.
There is a growing disparity in the cost of EV charging, as at-home charging continues to be charged at the lower VAT rate of 5% in comparison with public charging at 20%. This disparity will continue to affect the 11 million households in the UK that rely on public charging unless the Government acts.
Neil Isaacson, CEO of Believ, says that if EV adoption is to grow, then charging must be accessible to all: “We offer residents convenient and reliable on-street charging, and aim to provide a charging experience as close as possible to that of home charge point.
“The energy crisis is presenting enormous challenges for everyone, and we are aware that all drivers are particularly hard hit. We have already absorbed significant increases in the wholesale energy cost that we’ve seen over the last six months, and we now must bring our tariffs in line with our competitors.”
“Introducing our new member tariff will provide some savings for those who plug in frequently, and we will continue to look at other tarff structures that we could apply.”
As well as reducing charging fees through its new pricing structure, Believ is continuing to lobby the Government in order to reduce VAT rates for public charging. Under the new pricing, with a 20% VAT rate, 7.2p/kWh of Pay-As-You-Go rates goes to HMRC rather than 2.0p/kWh under a 5% VAT rate.
The member pricing offer will be available for drivers across all of Believs’ network from Tuesday 22nd March. The plan will be based on a rolling monthly model allowing drivers to cancel and re-enrol at any time.
