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R
Rank 1
RobertH1973
Rank 1
August 2, 2026
Question

EV Tariff and High Costs

  • August 2, 2026
  • 9 replies
  • 102 views

Hi All

I have a new EV car and signed up for the Charge Anytime Tarriff, I see a credit against the tariff, but I seem to be paying for my full electricity usage (and the tariff on top) it doesn't seem to be reflecting the EV charge out of the total which is double my usage compared to last year?  

I’ve seen that at the beginning of each month it should credit this back but for me it’s charging for the tariff, crediting back a small amount, but still charging me for the full consumption.  (This is the 3rd month on the tariff now)

Anyone else getting this issue?  

Thanks 

    9 replies

    M
    Rank 7
    mikes01666
    Rank 7
    August 2, 2026

    This is the madness of Charge Anytime. You pay full rate and then get a credit the next month.  I invite you to try and reconcile the two!  It's impossible.  Far better to just charge a discounted overnight rate. Thankfully OVO is being taken over and this mad system will die.

    I kept going on at this for ages and finally left for a sane energy provider.

    R
    Rank 1
    RobertH1973Author
    Rank 1
    August 2, 2026

    Thanks Mike … for me it seems like I’m paying for the full electricty and the tariff so paying twice! At the moment it would have been way more economical for me to stay with petrol! Hopefully it may make more sense after this months bill, if not will consider changing suppliers to one which does make sense (and save some money)

    N
    Rank 6
    Nealeb
    Rank 6
    August 2, 2026

    Have you been able to monitor what is happening by using the CA app while charging? That should show if you are “smart charging” or not. I had problems with my own system when I first signed up to CA and it turned out that I had not properly entered my location. That meant that CA did not recognise that it was my car charging and I was charged full tariff as well. You cannot change your location yourself so you need to contact the CA team who can help by deleting your stored location and allowing you to re-enter it.

    I agree that trying to check the details on each bill is a nightmare - I have never really managed to reconcile the numbers. It’s a really complicated way to do things, at least from the consumer end.

      Peter E
      Super User
      Peter ESuper User
      Super User
      August 2, 2026

      I agree wholehearted with your comment that this is a complicated way of charging a car but all smart charging is complicated to a similar extent when you realise all the things that have to be working in order for it to be successful. Even if you get it right not everything works perfectly every time and you have to look at the benefits of smart charging in the context of not only cost but reliability. 

       

      For me, as an engineer, I find unreliability to be intolerable and I hate complicated solutions where simpler solutions exist. I suppose you could say it's a trade off between cost and reliability but I pay about the same for dumb charging with fixed charging hours. In the five years I've had an EV I have had only two failed charges in about 1,000 so it's 99.8% reliable. I can also account for what I've paid because I pay what the rate is at the time which applies to the house as well. In the end we all have to make the decision as to what is most important and if that need is not being met then you need to review what you are doing.

       

      The government and suppliers sold smart charging as the best possible solution but unfortunately the software in the car or charge point is not necessarily compatible with how your supplier wants to charge your car. EV forums are filled with threads about how their car is not smart charging properly.

       

      Peter

       

      PS The two faults. One was a faulty RCD. The other was a commando connector filled up with water (?) and the RCD did its job and tripped.

      Reducing my yearly fossil fuel usage with an EV (-900 litres petrol), A2AHP (-8,700 kWh gas) and Timed Immersion heater (-1,500 kWh gas)
      R
      Rank 1
      RobertH1973Author
      Rank 1
      August 2, 2026

      Hi there on the app if shows it’s smart charging  and shows the draw down on the “included” electricity which is why I really can’t understand how it works as the bill and the app don’t seem to align it’s very odd. 

      Peter E
      Super User
      Peter ESuper User
      Super User
      August 2, 2026

      If you email the Charge Anytime team, if you haven't done already, then they should be able to answer your query in detail.  I'll tag @Chris_OVO to see if he can give a better direction to head in for answers.

       

       ovocharge@ovo.com

       

      Peter 

      Reducing my yearly fossil fuel usage with an EV (-900 litres petrol), A2AHP (-8,700 kWh gas) and Timed Immersion heater (-1,500 kWh gas)
        Chris_OVO
        Community Manager
        Chris_OVO
        Community Manager
        August 3, 2026

        You’ve given the right advice ​@Peter E it’d be best for ​@RobertH1973 to drop them an email as they’ve said and the Charge Anytime team can look into the matter. They’ll have access to the account information and can see what’s happened. If you get stuck along the way give me a nudge and i’ll continue to monitor 🙂

        Renewable energy jokes never get old.
          R
          Rank 1
          RobertH1973Author
          Rank 1
          August 3, 2026

          Thanks Chris, will wait to see what they reply :-)

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