EV Charging: What to Look At Before You Buy

Off-street parking is the first question, not the only one

A driveway or allocated space makes a home chargepoint straightforward in most cases. It is also the condition attached to the government grant schemes: private off-street parking is required.

But a driveway on its own does not settle it. The property still needs the electrical capacity, and depending on the tenure it may need someone else's permission. Those three things - parking, power, permission - are separate questions, and a property can pass one and fail another.

Leasehold, shared driveways and managing agents

This is where it gets complicated, and where a conveyancer earns their fee.

If the property is leasehold, or the parking is communal, or the driveway is shared, installing a chargepoint typically needs consent from the freeholder, management company or managing agent. Where the parking space is demised to the flat, the position differs from where it is communal land the leaseholder simply has a right to use.

Recent reform in this area has shifted the burden, so that a landlord refusing consent is generally expected to show the refusal is reasonable rather than simply decline. Limited electrical capacity, where upgrading the supply would be disproportionately expensive, is one of the grounds that comes up.

What any of this means for a specific property depends on the lease, the title and the management arrangements - which is a question for the conveyancer reviewing them, not for a general guide.

No driveway? Cross-pavement channels have moved fast

For the 40% of homes without off-street parking, running a cable across a public footway is not permitted, for obvious reasons. The alternative that has grown quickly is the cross-pavement channel: a shallow, self-closing gully set into the footway so a cable can run from the house to a car at the kerb without being a trip hazard.

As of 2026 these have gone from trial to fairly widespread. Roughly 42% of UK councils expect to offer them by the end of the year - a handful already live, a larger number in trial, and more planning a rollout.

Two things worth knowing. Provision is inconsistent: whether your street qualifies depends entirely on the local authority. And so is cost - some councils install them free, others charge upwards of a thousand pounds. The relevant council's website is the only reliable source for a given address.

The reason people go to the trouble is the running cost difference: domestic electricity tariffs are typically several times cheaper than public rapid charging.

Electrical capacity, and why it is not a survey question

A chargepoint adds a significant continuous load. Whether a property can take it depends on the incoming supply, the consumer unit, and in some cases whether the distribution network operator needs to be notified or the supply upgraded.

A RICS Level 2 or Level 3 survey does not answer this. Surveys look at condition, not at whether a specific future installation is feasible. An electrician or an approved installer is the person who assesses it, usually with a site survey before quoting.

Older properties, flats, and homes with a shared supply are where capacity questions come up most often.

Grants, as they stand in August 2026

There are two schemes that come up repeatedly, and both change periodically. A chargepoint grant for renters and flat owner-occupiers covers 75% of purchase and installation up to a £500 cap per socket. A residential landlord grant rose to £500 per socket in April 2026, from £350.

Both require private off-street parking, an eligible vehicle, and installation by an OZEV-registered installer. Any third-party permission - landlord, freeholder, managing agent - has to be in place before applying.

One point that surprises tenants: where a landlord funds or consents to the installation, the chargepoint typically belongs to the property rather than the occupier, and stays behind on a move.

Amounts, caps and eligibility in this area are revised regularly. The GOV.UK grant pages are the authoritative source on the day you are looking.

Questions that fit naturally into a viewing

Whether there is an existing chargepoint, and if so who installed it and when. Whether the parking is demised, shared or communal, and who manages it. Where the consumer unit is and how old it looks. Whether neighbours on the street have chargepoints or cross-pavement channels. What the council's position is on that street.

Our viewing checklist covers the rest of what is worth attention on a first visit.