As a Ride-Hailing / Uber driver in an electric vehicle your first place to start is to download the ZAP MAP App which works on iPhone and Android.

Worry not there are a lot of charge points in London! If you look at the below image this is a map of all the charge points within the M25 currently on ZapMap.

The charge points you can access via ZAP MAP are all owned by different networks. Here is a helpful guide to the different networks and what you need to do to be able to plug your car in:

• Polar plus – Polar allows you to charge at over 7,000 points across the UK for just £7.85 a month, with 3 free months* for all new members. Go to POLAR NETWORK to sign up. Or you can access this network on a pay as you go basis easily by downloading their app POLAR INSTANT registering and then you can start using it
• ChargeYourCar – you can join by following this LINK. You need to register and get a card for this which costs £20
• Shell Recharge – This is connected so certain Shell petrol stations and all you need is a debt or credit card to charge. Click HERE to find out more.
• Ecotricity – It costs 39p per kWh to charge your electric vehicle using an Electric Highway charge point. But if you’re an Ecotricity green energy customer, you’ll get better than half price charging on the Electric Highway at 19p per kWh. You don’t need a card just download the app by following this LINK.
• GeniePoint – Again there is no need to get a special card for this just go to their website and register GENIE POINT.

There are other options out there too, these are just a few solutions we have used.

You buy electricity by KW so e.g. for a 40 KW Nissan Leaf you will need to buy 40 KW of electricity to charge your car. Simple right?

The price per KW varies depending on which charging network you use. On the faster charging ‘Rapid Chargers’ you generally pay more per KW as you don’t have to wait long for your car to get charged up.

Some example pricing based on a 40 KW Nissan Leaf being charged at 80% giving you about 134 miles of range is as follows:

• Polar Instant £8 on a 50 KW rapid charger so only 6p/mile
• Ecotricity £12.48 so 9p/mile (this is a lot cheaper if you join Ecotricity)

Prices vary depending on the charging provider. We suggest you use the ZAP MAP app to figure out convenient chargers near you / the places you generally drive or like to take breaks, then do some research into the chargers that work for you.

The speed at which an EV charges depends on the KW’s of the charge point, the higher the number the faster it charges your car. If your car has a bigger battery it will take longer to charge than a car with a smaller battery.

Nissan state that for the new Nissan Leaf on a 50kW Quick Charger you can charge from 20 to 80% around 60 min or on a 7kW Wallbox (home charger) it would take 7h30 to charge.

You should always charge it at the end of your shift, plug it in overnight or during the day if you work at night and get a full recharge before you start working again. If you’re working in and around central London you should have enough range to cover you. If you need to top up you can use ZAP MAP and find a charge point somewhere that suits you and take a break.

Driving an EV means you need to think more about keeping it charged than you would if you are driving a petrol / diesel car.

Remember there are loads of charging points out there so with a little bit of pre-planning you can happily drive around in an EV and work for Uber without it impacting your ability to earn money.