“Give employees a charging card and it is sorted.” A common oversimplification.

In practice, public charging is full of hidden costs that push up the official kWh price considerably. Here is what to expect.

Four hidden costs

01

Roaming margin

When an employee charges with card X at a charger from operator Y, a roaming margin applies: typically 5 to 25 cents per kWh on top of the charger’s standard rate.

Key takeaway: on an average 30 kWh session, that is €1.50 to €7.50 of invisible margin per session.
02

Idle fee

Many fast chargers charge €0.10 to €0.30 per minute when a car stays plugged in after charging.

Key takeaway: if an employee plugs in at 12:30 and only returns at 14:00 after lunch, you quickly pay €15 to €20 extra.
03

Session fee

Some operators charge a fixed fee per session, from €0.50 to €1.50. Harmless once.

Key takeaway: 3 sessions per week × 50 weeks = €75 to €225 extra per employee per year.
04

Price differences between apps and cards

The same charger can charge a different price depending on the app or card used. Differences of up to €0.15 per kWh are not unusual. More in public charging in Belgium.

Key takeaway: employees who choose the most expensive option for lack of information cost you hundreds of euros a year.

Worked example: a fleet of 50 electric cars

Assume 20% public charging on average. That is 1,000 kWh per car per year, or 50,000 kWh for the whole fleet.

Roaming margin€4,000 per yearAverage €0.08 per kWh
Session fees€3,750 per year100 sessions per car × €0.75
Idle fees€2,500 per yearEstimated

Altogether €10,250 per year in hidden costs. That is €205 per car, on top of the official kWh price.

How much is your fleet overpaying?Our fleet specialist breaks down the savings per scenario.
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How to control these costs

  1. Choose one charging card providerWith a transparent tariff structure and sufficient coverage. Not three different ones.
  2. Set an internal guidelineHome charging where possible, public charging only on the road, fast charging only when necessary.
  3. Monitor the share of public charging per driverDo this monthly. Outliers usually come from charging habits, not necessity. With Certipower charging cards and reporting in Certitool, you see it per driver and per session, without manual work.

The structural alternative

The more you shift to home charging with split billing, the less public charging and the fewer hidden costs. At 80% home charging, the average hidden cost per car is halved.

InstallAt the employee’s home, on the company site and on the road.
MeasureConsumption per user and per location, without estimates.
Split billingYour employee pays nothing upfront and submits no receipts. How split billing works
My.CertipowerHome and public charging per driver and per session, without Excel.

More about our public charging card. Read also charging cards for companies in Europe and the TCO of an electric company car over 4 years.

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How much can your fleet save on public charging?

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  • Analysis of your charging sessions per driver
  • Savings broken down per scenario
  • A proposal with costs and savings in euros
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