EV Charger Installation Day: What to Expect

A home EV charger installation is normally a single visit of 2-4 hours. The installer mounts the unit on your wall, runs a dedicated cable back to your consumer unit (fuse board), switches your power off briefly to connect the new circuit, then commissions the charger, pairs the app and shows you how everything works before leaving. Plan for a morning or an afternoon, and expect to be home throughout.

Before the day: the survey and how to prepare

Almost every reputable installer starts with a pre-installation survey, usually done remotely. You answer questions and send photos of your consumer unit, electricity meter, main fuse and the parking spot. This is how complications — an undersized main fuse, an ageing fuse board, a long cable run — get flagged and priced before anyone turns up. The installer you choose will check your supply and consumer unit as part of the quote, so be accurate with the photos: a survey that doesn’t match reality is the most common reason a fitting visit turns into a re-book.

Behind the scenes, the installer also notifies your Distribution Network Operator (DNO) — the company that runs the local cables — through the network operators’ standard notification process. For a straightforward install, that happens around the time of the work. If your main fuse needs upgrading, or your home shares a looped supply cable with a neighbour, the DNO has to do its part first, and that can add weeks to the timeline.

Your own prep list is short: clear access to the wall and the fuse board, have your Wi-Fi password to hand, and keep the car available for the final test. On cost, the headline price you were quoted assumes a straightforward job — the survey is where any extras get priced, so there should be no surprises on the day. If you haven’t picked an installer yet, find an installer near you or request a free quote.

What happens during the 2-4 hours

The sequence on the day is fairly standard:

1. Final position check. You confirm exactly where the unit goes — as close to the parking spot as practical, on a solid permanent wall — an exposed outdoor wall is fine, as chargers are designed to live outside. If it’s tethered, check the cable will reach your car’s charging port comfortably.
2. Mounting and cabling. The charger is fixed to the wall and a dedicated cable is run to your consumer unit. Most installers include a set cabling allowance in their standard price; runs beyond it are the classic quoted extra.
3. Circuit protection. The new circuit gets its own protection at the fuse board — typically an RCBO, or an MCB with a Type A RCD.
4. A short power cut. Your supply is switched off while the circuit is connected. There’s no official figure for how long, but it’s routinely well under an hour — boil the kettle first.
5. Earthing checks. Most modern chargers have open-PEN fault protection built in, which lets them meet the BS 7671 requirements for EV installations (Section 722) without the separate earth rod older installs often needed.

An installer can legitimately stop work if the consumer unit turns out to be unsafe or the survey photos didn’t tell the whole story. Frustrating, but it’s the right call.

Commissioning, app setup and your first charge

Once wired, the charger is commissioned: a live charging test, firmware check, and pairing with the manufacturer’s app on your phone. Expect to create an account and connect the unit to your Wi-Fi.

One thing that surprises people: chargers sold in Great Britain since 30 June 2022 come with a default smart-charging schedule that avoids weekday peaks (8-11am and 4-10pm), and a randomised delay of up to 10 minutes when charging starts. At first use you must be offered the choice to accept the schedule, remove it, or set your own — and you can cancel the delay whenever it applies. A good installer will set the schedule around your electricity tariff, so it’s worth knowing your off-peak hours before they arrive.

The handover: paperwork, grant and warranty

Before leaving, the installer should walk you through starting, stopping and scheduling a charge. Then comes the paperwork — here’s what to expect:

The EIC matters because installing a new circuit is notifiable work under Part P of the Building Regulations in England and Wales. If you’re eligible for the EV Chargepoint Grant — up to £500 per socket (raised from £350 on 1 April 2026), covering 75% of the supply-and-install cost, aimed mainly at renters and flat owners, and funded until at least 31 March 2027 — the installer claims it and deducts it from your bill; GOV.UK has the full eligibility rules. Manufacturer warranties commonly run around three years — confirm whose job it is to register yours.

What good aftercare looks like

Certificates should arrive within days or weeks, not months — chase them if not. Beyond that, good aftercare means a support line that answers, firmware updates arriving through the app, and warranty repairs arranged without fuss. Most home units don’t need a mandatory annual service, though a periodic electrical inspection alongside the rest of your home’s wiring is sensible.

Smart-charging rules, installation standards and grant amounts all change over time — everything here was last checked in July 2026. For the rules themselves, GOV.UK and legislation.gov.uk are the definitive sources, and a good installer will happily explain how each applies to your home.