Customer Stories: Go ahead and book with them

Due to building restrictions, Tony couldn't have a charger installed on the outside of his flat. Fortunately however, there was a work-around.

What made you choose the Genesis GV60?

I saw an advert for the Kia EV6 and thought it looked amazing. I put a deposit down but was told it would be a six-month wait.

That turned into a nine-month wait and then a year. I went to Fully Charged and saw the GV60.

I liked the idea that it had a more luxurious interior than the EV6.

Genesis was just starting out in the UK so they had around 400 vehicles in stock, so I decided to put a deposit down on that too and then it would come down to whoever could get me the car first.

Genesis was able to fulfil the order first, so then I cancelled the EV6 order and got a refund for that.

The range is good, the charging speed is excellent and given the money you’re paying for it, it has a certain sense of luxury about it.

It’s been fantastic. 

What made you decide to get a home EV charge point installed?

Having a home charger just makes the most sense in terms of getting the running costs down as much as possible. Personally, I think it’s a difficult recommendation right now to have an EV if you don’t have off-street parking and a home charger. There are things like Co Charger and that can be good, but I think people without off-street parking are going to have a difficult time of it.

Did you find the world of EV charging at home confusing initially?

In terms of the actual charger, because I’m in a leasehold property of flats, there are a lot of restrictions on what you can do on the outside of the building. I wanted to get something as small as possible. That’s why I went for a Sync EV, (which was one of the smallest home chargers you could get at the time) 

How did you go about clearing the home charger installation with the building’s management company?

It was a bit tricky actually because they didn’t and still don’t have a policy in place for installing chargers. I was asking them what I needed to do for it to be OK and they just told me no, which I thought was really obtuse.

I was happy to be a guinea pig and to build a policy around my example. I spoke with my local council to see if there was an obstacle there.

There wasn’t, so it’s just that the building’s management company hasn’t sorted out a policy yet.

I ended up taking the decision to install the charger on the inside of my ground floor property, on the inside recess of the window frame.

It means I run the cable through my sash window to the car. My designated parking space is right outside. 

Are you hoping to move the charger outside when you get permission?

Yes. I don’t think the building’s management company has a problem with it, they just haven’t developed a policy and caught up with how things are moving. Once they do, I’d asked the installer at Smart Home Charge to cater for some extra flex with the cabling so we can move it outside without having to redo everything. Smart Home Charge was really accommodating. I was future-proofing because I think at some point I will be allowed to have the charger on the outside. 

How did you choose the home energy tariff you’re on and how is that working out with running costs for the GV60?

I was already with E.ON and my deal with them was coming to an end. I approached them to see what deals they had that would suit and there was an evening tariff from 12 am until 7am at 9.5p/kwh. I know that’s not the lowest, but I thought it was competitive but I was just keen to stick with who I knew and for things to be as seamless as possible. 

How did you find Smart Home Charge?

I saw Smart Home Charge advertised on YouTube. I’d then gone on to watch their YouTube channel content and then went through to the main website from there to browse. I’d actually spoken with the team at Smart Home Charge in person at Fully Charged Farnborough as well and that was really nice. We just talked about their plans for the business and what they’re up to. That instilled even more confidence and that it was a really professional outfit. 

What made Smart Home Charge stand out from other installers? i.e. why did you choose us?

I liked the idea that it was a specialist for installing home chargers. Some of my friends were opting for a local electrician. I didn’t like the idea of that and I think I can save a lot more time to do those pre-checks online, rather than getting an electrician out and finding out they either can’t do what you need or don’t want the job. I also thought if I’m buying the charger from this company and they have expertise installing it, then I’d be better off going with that. I liked the way everything was packaged up.  

How did you get on with the online site survey? Did you find it easy to follow?

All the pre-checks were really easy to follow, as was uploading some images and video to show where everything was and where I wanted it to go. 

How would you rate your installers and the work they did?

They were fantastic. They gave me a really good overview of what needed to take place so it wasn’t some kind of mysterious thing going on. I knew how long the installation would take, which was correct down to the minute and the installer was super tidy and put down dust sheets to make sure all the floors were protected. The installer double-checked with me exactly where I wanted the unit and if there were any particular requirements. As I mentioned before I wanted to install it in a way that meant I could move it in the future if I needed to. 

Did the installer go the extra mile?

After it was all installed the installer put the app on my phone and made sure it was all connected, tested and working. I had the charger installed a couple of months before the car turned up. He assured me it was all installed fine. Plugging it in was the moment of truth, but it all worked the first time! 

What would you say to someone who is looking to buy a home EV charging point and is considering Smart Home Charge?

Go ahead and book with them. They’re well established, professional, courageous and the pricing was competitive.