Demands for EVs are on the rise and the future looks good for them, however, a recent study by J.D. Power has found some worrying news related to EV charging. A new study finds a drop in EV home charging satisfaction levels and if true then this could spell bad news for the EV industry which was just beginning to establish its foothold.
The overall satisfaction has seen a year-on-year fall and a further 12-point drop has now taken the rating to 740 out of 1,000. Factors such as charging speed and the rising cost of electricity can be held responsible for it.
What’s surprising is that owners of EVs from 2023 and 2022 are less satisfied with charging speeds as compared to people who purchased an EV in 2021 or 2020 even though the former were offered better charging technology.
JD Power partnered with PlugShare for this study. A total of 13,860 participants who owned EVs or plug-in hybrid models between the period of 2017 to 2023 and ran it from Dec 2022 to Feb 2023 were considered for the study.
The satisfaction level of customers was measured based on criteria like ease of use, retail price, length of cord, charger size, ease of storing cable, cost of charging, charging speed, and reliability.
The suggestions to overcome the falling satisfaction levels included scheduling your charging, choosing the right location, and knowing your utility provider. Also, upgrading to Level 2 chargers can benefit EV owners and improve their satisfaction levels.
A new study finds a drop in EV home charging satisfaction levels and what’s shocking about it is that today we have more EV charging stations than ever and the numbers only seem to be rising. However, it is the hurdles in the way of charging that is adding to customers’ problem be it at home or outside.
However, some blame for this lies with the owners of EVs as well. A sizable chunk of EV owners signing up for level 2 chargers were quite content with the charging speed that they got as compared to those with level 1 chargers. And as for the cost of electricity, a good number of people didn’t know about low rates at non-peak hours or local utility programs that could help bring their bills down.
Executive Director of EV practice at J.D. Power, Brent Gruber said, “There are programs available today that will help EV owners with the startup costs, such as installing or upgrading to a faster Level 2 charger. There are also programs designed to save EV owners money with the ongoing costs of charging their vehicles, like scheduling to charge during the most affordable time of the day. However, J.D. Power sees that there is little awareness and utilization of these benefits. As the EV marketplace continues to grow, brands that help owners take advantage of these offerings will be in a much better position down the road.”
While the segment average for level 2 chargers drops to 740, Tesla’s permanently mounted level 2 chargers, Grizzl-E, and Emporia Energy scored 790, 757, and 754 points respectively.
Source: JD Power
