The ultimate guide to EV incentives and grants for businesses

Back in September 2023 the government unveiled the zero emission vehicle (ZEV) mandate which  requires 80% of new cars and 70% of new vans sold in Great Britain to be zero emission by 2030, increasing to 100% by 2035. 

This sent a clear message that the switch to EVs is here to stay with fleet electrification becoming inevitable for businesses.

Despite their reputation for being expensive, electric vehicles are becoming increasingly affordable for businesses. When you take into account the total cost of ownership- meaning the upfront cost plus the running costs of the vehicle- EVs often come out on top in terms of affordability as a fleet option. 

Not only are EVs overall cheaper to run, there’s also plenty of schemes available to help boost your budget! We’ve rounded up all of the EV incentives, initiatives and grants available to your business so you can get the most support on your transition to electric. 

Let’s get plugged in…

Grants for prep work, including purchasing and installing a charge point

The EV Infrastructure Grant

Specifically geared towards small to medium sized businesses, the electric vehicle infrastructure grant for staff and fleets provides financial support for the wider works needed to fit charge points. 

If you plan to start installations immediately or in the future the grant can cover up to 75% of the cost- up to a maximum of £15,000. You can get:

• Up to £350 for each chargepoint socket installed

• Up to £500 for each parking space enabled with charging infrastructure

There is no need to play favourites if you are a multi-site business. You can receive up to five grants across five different sites!

There is some eligibility criteria so give our list a scan before heading here to start an application:

• You’re a company registered with companies house, or VAT registered with HMRC, that has less than 249 employees.

• The chargepoint will only be used by the building's staff and vehicles.

• At least one chargepoint socket needs to be installed as part of the work. 

• You must carry out work on at least 5 parking spaces, so they either have ChargePoint sockets or are ready to have them installed in the future

• OZEV-approved equipment and installers must be used for the work. You can find a list of approved equipment here, and installers here. 

You can apply for the EV infrastructure grant up until the 31st March 2025

The Workplace Charging scheme

The workplace charging scheme grant is aimed at reducing the cost of purchasing hardware and it’s installation. 

The scheme will cover up to 75% of total costs but you will be capped at: 

• £350 per socket 

• 40 sockets across all sites by applicant. If you have 40 sites you will be limited to 1 per site. 

For the workplace charging scheme there is no employee number cap and it is open to all eligible businesses, charities, public sector organisations and small accommodation businesses. 

Let’s talk eligibility! To get approved for the workplace charging scheme you should: 

• You must either own the property or have permission from the landlord to install the charge points at the sites listed in the application

• Your site will need to have dedicated off-road parking that is clearly associated with the premises.

• You must be able to provide evidence that the parking is for your staff or fleet, not for customer use. It must be either on-site or a reasonable distance from the place of work.

• OZEV-approved equipment and installers must be used for the work. You can find a list of approved equipment here, and installers here. 

You can apply for the workplace charging scheme up until the 31st March 2025

Grants for the purchase of an electric vehicle

The plug-in grant 

Some of you legacy EV drivers might remember the plug in car grant. Launched in 2011 it offered a discount of up to £5,000 when buying a new zero-emission car. While this grant was a huge success, EV registrations jumped from under 1,000 to hitting the 100,000’s per year, it came to an end in 2022. 

Fleet managers can breathe a sigh of relief however as the government continues to incentivise businesses to go green. The grant you receive will depend on the size of vehicle you’re eyeing up, so let’s take a look: 

Grants are also available for mopeds, motorcycles and taxis. You can see a full list of eligibility criteria and find out how to apply here. 

Additional Incentives 

Lower benefit-in-kind tax

Benefit-in-kind tax is payable on cars provided to employees by businesses for both work and personal use.

This tax rate is currently decided by the level of Co2 emissions the car emits. For EVs the benefit-in-kind rate is currently set at 2% where it will remain until 2025. 

Hybrids are more costly than EVs but for petrol or diesel the rate is usually 10 times what an electric car driver would pay!

To calculate how much you will pay in benefit-in-kind you will need a few things: 

• The rate applicable to the car

• The cars P11D value (the sale price minus VAT and registration)

• Your own income tax bracket

Let's look at two examples!

Vans are subject to a different type of Benefit-in-Kind tax which varies from zero payments to up to £3,430 a year, depending if the van is only used for business and commuting, or also used for private journeys. Electric vans are currently exempt from this charge.  

0% Vehicle Excise Duty (VED)

Until 2025 electric vehicle drivers are exempt from paying vehicle excise duty, otherwise known as road tax. This extends to vehicles that are valued at over £40,000. 

From April 1st 2025 EV drivers will be required to pay road tax in the same way that petrol or diesel drivers do. You can find out more about road tax rates here. 

Other benefits

Driving an electric vehicle may mean you can avail of benefits that other drivers can’t, such as: 

• Exemption from all fees related to London’s Ultra Low Emission Zones, which as of 2023 has expanded across all London boroughs. You are also exempt from fees related to Clean Air Zones in other cities. 

• Charities and London based businesses with under 50 employees can apply to scrap or retrofit up to 3 vans or minibuses and get an increased grant payment as part of the Mayor of London’s £1210 million scrappage scheme.

• Free parking in certain locations.

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