Indra Smart Charger Problems - Left High and Dry

Thanks Blastoise186, I’m really at a loss, Not sure Indra will do anything, but thank you so much for trying. 

You’re welcome.

As I’m sure you’ll agree, in cases like this it’s only fair that we give them a heads up about these threads and invite them to swing by the Forum to take a look. We never force a company to reply of course, but quite a few of them do appreciate at least being made aware and being given a chance to respond. I can tell you that Indra agreed with me on that point.

If they do choose to respond, they may need a little time - a supervisor needs to review the thread first and check a few things, but please keep an eye out just in case they do stop by.

Hey ​@Kassy 

I’m really sorry to hear this. The following topics may have some helpful advice:
 

How to get in contact with the Charge Anytime team

• Charge Anytime - 0330 175 9678 (Option 1 new customers/option 2 existing customers) 

• chargeanytime@ovo.com

Thanks Emmamuelle,

I don't think its a charge anytime issue so to speak, The Charger, when plugged in just wont charge, even on boost it wont charge and boost is there to overide the schedule and charge the car when ever you want.

Its a communication problem from the Charger to the car, I have been told its the Communication cable inside the Charger box that needs replacing, but apparently Indra don't supply spare parts, so I'm left with replacing the whole box after just 3 years in service. These chargers aren't fit for purpose if they breakdown this quickly and you cant get a simple part to fix them.

Hi ​@Kassy, if your Indra chargepoint is not the tethered flavour, is it at all possible for you to borrow a charging lead, just to discount any problem in the cable? Although I notice you say the car charges OK at a public chargepoint, maybe with your own cable?

If it is “just” (always a big if, using a word like “only” or “ just”, I know!) the communication cable inside the Indra, this may be repairable (“easily”?) by a suitably qualified person? Something twisted, pulled or loosened over three years of regular usage? The 10 minute business is a puzzler, though.

Hope you get it sorted quickly, it’ll be interesting to see what Indra say…

All the best

Hi Waltyboy,

It is a Tethered Cable and I would use my own charger if I could, as this is the one I use on Public chargers so I know it works fine. I have an electrician coming at the weekend to take a look and I will mention this as well.

As for Indra, well when I requested an email from their “Triage team” who looked at my enquiry, this is so I could relay this to the Electrician, I was told in the email that they don't know what the problem is, I’m sure they must have had similar problems from customers, I cant be the first to have this problem. I feel I have had absolutely no support with this problem and was told by Indra to call them when my Electrician turns up, hard to call them when its the weekend. I’m now suppose to take pictures and send them on Monday.

Again absolutely no support and nothing coming from Indra in the form of reasons why my Charger wont Charge, I’ve had more help diagnosing the problem from the Electrician over the phone than Indra!

I’m hoping and praying its an easy fix.

Hi ​@Kassy, hope it goes well for you…in fact I feel quite optimistic on your behalf now, knowing you’ve got what sounds like a good and helpful electrician actually hands-on on the case.  Will be keeping my fingers crossed for you over the weekend, please do keep us posted on developments. Especially as Indra is one of only a select few chargepoints compatible with tariffs/bolt-ons such as OVO’s Charge Anytime and Octopus Go or Agile your problem is doubly of interest to many of us on this user forum.

Very good luck to you. I know you feel somewhat let down by the manufacturer, but it does sound to me (from this distance, and admittedly I’m not suffering your stress and frustration) as if Indra are keeping at the very least a watching brief: as you say, you can’t be the first of their customers to experience this failure, whatever its precise cause, so your case has got to be of real moment to them. Machinery and software can only be tested up to a certain point on a test bench, any putative future use being very much guesswork; your already long and successful usage through three or four winters and summers of (daily/weekly?) UK use has to be pure gold dust for Indra, competing as they are in such a rapidly evolving market. 

All the very best for now…

Just to let you know, Indra hasn’t responded to my offer to swing by the Forum - I just checked that particular email inbox a few minutes ago and there’s nothing in there.

Hey ​@Kassy 

You can contact the Indra team via the following:

 https://www.indra.co.uk/contact/ 

support@indra.co.uk 
or 01684 770 631

Please let us know how you get on
 

I've stumbled on this thread via  google search - sorry to resurrect.

​@Kassy I have the exact same problem on my 4 year old Indra pro - everything looks like it is working but no charge actually flowing. They are only interested in selling me a new one.

Can I ask if you got it sorted in the end, and if so, how?

Thanks

Hi

yes I got it sorted in end, I had an electrician come out and one of the switches inside the charger had come loose, they just clip in, so all he done was clip It back into place and it worked. 
 

now we know what to do if it happens again. All he done was take the front cover off the charger and  it was obvious to see. 
 

so glad it was that and nothing else. There are 2 screws under the face of the charger that unscrew then the front comes off. 
 

hope u get it mended. 

This is fantastic - thanks for getting back to me.

I see that the screw are security screws, so just ordered some bits of amazon and will have a look inside tomorrow. If something obvious, will see if I can clip back in myself - if not, I will get a professional in.

Thanks again - fingers crossed it is the same easily sortable problem. 

There is another possibility if you can do this safely.

If you can isolate the unit from the mains (please be careful and do not attempt if you cannot be sure of your safety) you can check the continuity of the wires from the unit to the plug (assuming it's a tethered cable). There is Earth, Neutral, Live and a fourth, thinner wire called the Control Pilot. When you wind and unwind the cable the larger wires place a strain on the thinner CP wire and it can break. If you have lost continuity on the CP wire it won't work. The answer is to replace the cable/plug with a new one of the same capability. Single phase, 32A.

Peter

​@a j m good morning and a warm welcome to the OVO Forum. I’ve applied the EV badge to your forum account so that other members can recognise you.

No need to apologise for resurrecting this thread - it’s good to know that these older threads still provide help to people through search engines 😁.

​@Kassy and ​@Peter E thanks so much for your great help here, and ​@a j m let us know if you get this fixed, or if you have any other questions.

I thought I would throw in another piece of information here. Just because the warranty has expired on a piece of equipment doesn’t mean you don’t have a right to claim a refund or replacement if the goods fail within an unreasonable time. The Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 9 states that:

The quality of goods includes their state and condition; and the following aspects (among others) are in appropriate cases aspects of the quality of goods—

(a)fitness for all the purposes for which goods of that kind are usually supplied;

(b)appearance and finish;

(c)freedom from minor defects;

(d)safety;

(e)durability

It is reasonable to expect a smart charge point to last five years and a dumb charge point to last 10 years. The time is based on what the average lifespan is for this types of equipment. I don’t have a reference for that but 3 years and 9 months is certainly not a reasonable life. Should you get to a dead end trying to get this fixed (some manufacturers will sometimes offer a discount on a replacement to wriggle out of this but you have the right to a free replacement) I would start a dialogue with the manufacturer quoting the CRA 2015, section 9, clause 3 and see where you get to. I think trading Standards may be your next move if they don’t play ball and perhaps a consultation with AI may reveal the best way to word the letter and how to proceed.

The installer is only liable for the installation part of the job and as it lasted this long they are clearly not a fault.

https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2015/15/section/9

Hope that works out well if you decide to pursue that course.

Peter

Thanks for everyone’s help here.

Got a friendly Electrician to have a look in the end (didn't want to die). Take a bow, ​@Kassy it was exactly same problem as you had - the ribbon cable to the socket was a tiny bit loose (so tiny the electrician didn't think it was an issue). But when I reassembled - and to his surprise - it works!

You have saved me £549 (minus £20 to the electrician and his mate for a pint) and banging my head against a wall with Indra, so thanks again and hope this thread helps someone else out in the future.

​@a j m that’s brilliant news - I’m happy to hear it. Thanks as well for keeping us updated.

​@Kassy a massive thanks for your help here; it’s great to see the Forum doing its job so well thanks to the huge amount of knowledge given out by the community 🎉.

Have a great weekend both when it comes.

Just to mention…

I’ve given Indra a heads up about this. I can’t promise anything, but I’ve asked them to review this thread just in case they can pick up any clues.

Hey ajm

Not a problem, glad you got it sorted and didn't need a new charger!

Little update for clarity (and to help Indra / anyone else if they do check here). It wasn't the ribbon cable but one of the lever type connectors had pinged open - shown here in red. Closing it fixed the issue. 

Thanks for the update ​@a j m - super helpful 😎.