Workplace Charging Scheme: A Plain-English Guide for UK SMEs

The Workplace Charging Scheme exists because the government wants more businesses to install EV chargers. It’s a voucher-based grant that knocks up to £350 off each socket you fit, capped at 40 sockets per site. If you’re weighing up whether to install workplace charging in your London or Essex premises, understanding the WCS is half the battle. The other half is knowing whether your site, your fleet, and your staff actually need it.

We’ve installed dozens of workplace chargers across commercial estates, office car parks, and industrial units in the past three years. Most clients ask the same questions: does the grant still exist, how much paperwork is involved, and will it cover the full cost? This guide answers all three.

What the Workplace Charging Scheme Actually Covers

The WCS pays up to £350 per socket, not per charger. A dual-socket unit counts as two grants. The scheme is live until March 2025 at the earliest, the government reviews it annually, so it may extend or close depending on uptake and budget.

You can claim for up to 40 sockets across a single site. If you operate multiple premises, each location gets its own 40-socket allowance. The grant only applies to the hardware and installation cost; it won’t cover groundworks, electrical upgrades, or ongoing maintenance.

Eligible chargers must be OZEV-approved, smart-enabled, and installed by an OZEV-authorised installer. We’re on that list. The charger needs to connect to the internet so usage data can be reported back to the scheme administrators. Offline units don’t qualify, no matter how cheap they are.

Who Can Apply (and Who Can’t)

The scheme is open to businesses, charities, and public sector organisations. Sole traders and partnerships qualify. You need a non-domestic electricity supply and a dedicated parking area, street parking or residential driveways don’t count.

Your business must be registered in the UK. If you’re a tenant, you’ll need landlord consent in writing before we start. If you’re the freeholder, no problem. Either way, the application goes in under the business name, not the building owner’s name.

Residential landlords can’t use the WCS for tenant parking. If you own a block of flats with commercial units on the ground floor, the car park serving those units might qualify, but it’s case-by-case. We’ve seen refusals where the parking was shared between flats and offices.

Fleet operators are the sweet spot. If you’re running vans, pool cars, or company vehicles that charge overnight at your depot or yard, the WCS was designed for you. Staff charging is also eligible, as long as the chargers are on business premises and the electricity supply is commercial-rated.

How Much It Actually Saves You

A typical 7kW wall-mounted charger costs between £800 and £1,200 fully installed, depending on cable runs and whether your distribution board needs upgrading. The WCS grant knocks £350 off that, so you’re paying £450 to £850 per socket after the voucher.

If you’re installing a twin-socket pedestal in an open car park, the hardware and install might run £2,000 to £2,800. Two grants take £700 off, leaving you with £1,300 to £2,100. Groundworks, trenching, ducting, tarmac reinstatement, sit outside the grant and can add another £500 to £1,500 depending on distance from your incoming supply.

The grant doesn’t stretch to cover electrical upgrades. If your main panel is maxed out or your incoming supply is too small, you’ll need a board upgrade or a new three-phase feed. That’s a separate cost, often between £1,200 and £3,500 for SME premises. We price it all upfront so there’s no surprises halfway through.

Item	Typical Cost	WCS Covers	You Pay
Single 7kW wall box	£900	£350	£550
Twin 7kW pedestal	£2,400	£700	£1,700
Board upgrade (if needed)	£1,800	£0	£1,800
Groundworks (20m trench)	£1,000	£0	£1,000

The Application Process (and Who Does What)

You don’t apply directly. Your installer handles the claim on your behalf. We register the job with OZEV before we start work, then submit the voucher claim once the chargers are commissioned and tested. The grant money comes to us, and we deduct it from your final invoice. You never see the voucher itself.

The process takes about two weeks from survey to approval, assuming your site is straightforward. If there’s a query, wrong tariff type on the meter, unclear parking ownership, missing landlord consent, it can stretch to four weeks. We’ve had jobs held up because the business rates account didn’t match the company name on the application. Details matter.

Once approved, we’ve got six months to complete the install and submit evidence. That’s plenty of time unless you’re planning major groundworks or waiting on a DNO connection. We take photos of the installed units, the charge point serial numbers, and the final electrical certificates, then upload everything to the OZEV portal. You get copies of the lot.

Payment from OZEV to us usually clears within three weeks of submission. Your invoice reflects the grant deduction from day one, so you’re not waiting for a rebate.

Common Reasons Claims Get Rejected

Wrong electricity supply. If your car park is on a domestic tariff or fed from a residential meter, the claim fails. We check this during the survey, but if you’ve recently changed supplier or the meter was mis-classified, it can surface later.

Non-compliant charger. Some clients want a specific brand or a second-hand unit to save money. If it’s not on the OZEV approved list or lacks smart functionality, it’s a non-starter. We only quote eligible hardware.

Shared parking with no clear business use. A car park that serves both a shop and the flats above won’t qualify unless you can prove the spaces are exclusively for business use. Painted bay numbers and a formal parking policy help, but OZEV can still refuse if the setup looks residential.

Missing landlord consent. If you’re leasing the building and the freeholder hasn’t signed off on the install, the claim gets bounced. We ask for this upfront, but some landlords drag their feet or want indemnity clauses that delay everything.

Whether It’s Worth Claiming in 2025

If you’re installing chargers anyway, the WCS is free money. The paperwork sits with us, not you, and the saving is immediate. For a small depot fitting four chargers, that’s £1,400 off the bill. Worth having.

If you’re on the fence about workplace charging, the grant alone won’t tip the balance. You still need a business case: enough EVs in your fleet or staff base to justify the capital outlay, a car park with reliable parking, and an electrical supply that can handle the load without expensive upgrades.

The scheme is winding down. It used to cover up to £14,000 per site; now it’s capped at £14,000 total (40 sockets × £350). If you’re planning a large rollout, don’t assume the grant will still be there in twelve months. We’re seeing more clients bring forward their installs to lock in the funding while it’s available.

For businesses in London and Essex, the calculation also includes the Ultra Low Emission Zone and future ZEZ expansion. If your fleet needs to go electric to avoid daily charges, workplace charging becomes essential, grant or not. The WCS just makes it cheaper to do sooner.

How We Handle WCS Installs

We survey the site, check your electrical capacity, and confirm eligibility before quoting. If your supply needs upgrading, we price that separately so you know the full cost. Once you approve, we register the job with OZEV and schedule the install.

Most single-charger jobs take half a day. Multi-unit installs on industrial estates or office parks can run two to three days depending on cable routes and whether we’re trenching across tarmac or running surface-mounted trunking. We coordinate with your facilities team to avoid blocking access during peak hours.

After commissioning, we hand over the app login, test each socket with a vehicle, and issue the electrical certificates. The OZEV claim goes in within 48 hours, and your invoice shows the grant deduction from the start. No chasing, no rebate forms.

Bottom line: The Workplace Charging Scheme takes up to £350 off each socket you install, handled entirely by your installer, with no paperwork on your side. It’s live until at least March 2025 but may not extend beyond that. If you’re fitting workplace chargers in the next twelve months, claim it. If you’re still deciding whether you need chargers at all, the grant is a sweetener, not a reason.