Installing an electric vehicle charger at your home
Before installing an electric vehicle charging point (EV charger) at your home, you need to check that it can be installed safely and seek our permission. Some homes are suitable for EV chargers, but others may not because of parking arrangements, safety considerations or shared spaces.
That’s why it’s important to contact us before you buy or install a charger.
What things do I need to consider before submitting a request?
Before purchasing or committing to an electric vehicle, you’ll first need to check whether a charger can safely be fitted at your home. You can do this by:
- Checking that your electricity supply is suitable by contacting your Distribution Network Operator (DNO), including confirming whether your home has a looped supply.
- Submitting an Alterations Request Form.- which is linked below.
Although we can review your alterations request form and confirm if a charger installation is allowed under our policy, we cannot confirm whether your electricity supply is suitable. This is your responsibility - so to avoid disappointment, we strongly recommend that you contact your electrical network operators before submitting your alterations request form. You can find out who your DNO is by visiting: Who is my Electrical Network Operator?
How do I request permission to install an electrical vehicle charger?
Please complete our Alterations Request Form, which is linked below. Once we receive your request, we’ll review the details you have shared and confirm whether the installation is possible.
When submitting your request, please include:
- Photos of your parking space and the area where the charger would be installed
- A simple sketch showing the route for any cabling
- Details of the charger you plan to install
- Information about your chosen installer. Please note: You will need to share a copy of our Electrical Vehicle (EV) Specification Guidance with your proposed installer to ensure that they provide a quote and work to our requirements.
Providing as much detail as possible will help us review your request more quickly.
Please note: In some circumstances we may not be able to approve an application if you have significant or long-standing rent arrears, unless a payment plan is in place.
Is my home likely to be suitable?
Every home is different, so we review each request individually. However, there are a few things that can affect whether installation is possible.
You may be able to install a charger if:
- You have a parking space directly connected to your home
- The parking space is on land that belongs to your property (sometimes called “parking in curtilage”)
Installation is less likely if:
- You do not have an allocated parking space (for example, you park on the street)
- You live in a flat or apartment
- Your parking space is separated from your home by shared land such as a road, footpath, grass verge or communal area
If you’re not sure whether your home is suitable, you can still submit an alterations request form and we’ll check for you.
How long does it take?
We aim to respond to alteration requests within 28 working days.
Please do not install an EV charger until you have received written permission from us, as not every home will be suitable.
Ready to apply?
If you think your home may be suitable, or you’d like us to check, please complete our Alterations Request Form linked below:
Installing a charger without permission
We understand that home improvements can be exciting, but it’s important to get approval before installing an EV charger - as installing a charger without permission could create safety risks and may breach your tenancy agreement.
If a charger is installed without approval, we may need to follow our unauthorised alterations process, which could include removing the charger and recharging the costs.
The easiest way to avoid this is simply to contact us first - we’re here to help.
Frequently asked Questions and Answers
We have put together a handy frequently asked questions and answers section to help you understand more.
Your application is more likely to be approved if you live in:
• A house, bungalow or maisonette with a driveway directly attached to your home, or
• A house with an allocated parking space that isn’t separated from your home by communal land or shared pathways.
Please note: even if your request is approved, it remains your responsibility to ensure your home has a suitable electricity supply for the proposed installation (including where it's part of a looped supply). We do not hold this information and will assume your electrical supply is adequate at the point of application.
Unfortunately, we cannot approve applications from customers who live in:
• Flats or apartments (except some maisonettes with a private driveway)
• Homes with communal parking
• Homes where your parking is separated from your home by shared or communal land
Our policy only covers installations that sit entirely within the boundary of a customer’s home. Chargers that cross shared land or are located in communal spaces can create challenges around safety, maintenance ongoing management.
We aim to process completed applications within 28 working days.
When assessing your application, our checks include, but are not limited to:
- Whether the proposed charger and cabling would sit fully within your home’s boundary
- Any risks associated with the installation, including fire and electrical safety
- The type of charger proposed
- Verifying your installer’s qualifications and insurance
- Any potential impact on neighbours or shared areas
- Whether your home is a listed building or sits within a conservation area
- The proposed charger location and its impact on existing utility systems (such as fixtures, fittings, pipes and cabling).
As this is treated as a home alteration, you will be responsible for the full cost of installation, maintenance and any future repairs of the charging point. You should ask your proposed installer to determine any associated costs.
- If you have a front garden, you may be able to apply to convert it into off-street parking by submitting an alteration request form (subject to additional conditions). Permission for this must be granted before we can consider an EV charger installation request.
- If your home/garden area is not suitable, you can still own an electric vehicle. While we cannot approve the installation of a charging point on our land, there are many public charging options available. You can visit Zap-Map to find chargers near you.
You will be responsible for:
- Providing electrical safety certificates after installation
- Maintaining the charger
- Ensuring it remains safe and in good working order
- Leaving the charger in place at the end of your tenancy (unless it is unsafe)
- Arranging appropriate insurance cover (for example, public liability insurance).
Platform’s approval confirms that installation is permitted at your home under our policies. It does not confirm that your electricity supply is suitable.
If your home has a looped supply (a shared service cable), work may be required by your Distribution Network Operator (DNO) before an EV charger can be installed. For this reason, we recommend contacting your DNO before submitting an alterations request form, as they can confirm whether any additional steps are needed.
If you proceed without contacting your DNO and your home is later identified as having a looped supply, your installer may be unable to complete the installation, even if approval has been granted by us.
If you’ve already installed an EV charger without permission, you’ll need to submit an alterations request form and let us know it has been installed. We’ll assess it against our eligibility criteria and contact you with the outcome.
If retrospective permission cannot be granted, the charger may need to be removed and you could be recharged for this.
Installing a charger without approval may pose safety risks and could breach your tenancy agreement, so we strongly recommend contacting us before making any changes.
Our alterations process covers customer-led installations only. It does not include communal or Platform funded EV charging infrastructure.
Permission to install an EV charger will remain valid for up to 6 months.
In this time, we expect your EV charger installation to be completed and copies of the relevant certificates provided to us.
