Ministers have been urged to slash VAT on public EV charging from 20% to 5% if fuel duty is frozen
Those who can’t charge their electric cars at home are paying much more than those who can. That’s why, in response to the Middle East conflict, ministers are being urged to cut tax on public electric vehicle (EV) charging if fuel duty is frozen.
There’s a growing demand for the Government to delay the planned increase in fuel duty this September due to the surge in petrol station prices caused by the skyrocketing cost of oil. However, EV advocates argue that any such move must be accompanied by a decrease in VAT on electricity bought at public EV charging points from 20% to 5%, aligning it with domestic charging rates.
Ginny Buckley, CEO of electric car advice site Electrifying.com, told the Press Association that while home charging an EV can cost as little as 2p per mile, those reliant on public chargers pay “closer to 18p per mile”, which is “more than running a petrol car”. She cited tax as a “big reason” for this discrepancy.
Ms Buckley said: “Drivers without access to home charging are the ones paying the highest prices – which seems fundamentally unfair.”
She recognised that petrol and diesel are “heavily taxed”, but argued that if ministers want “millions of people to go electric”, they need to “stop penalising those who don’t have a driveway”. According to RAC Foundation figures, tax makes up 55% of petrol pump prices and 51% for diesel.
Ben Nelmes, chief executive of transport think tank New Automotive, voiced his worries that numerous EV drivers are “exposed to rising energy costs” triggered by tensions between Iran and the US alongside its allies, since those relying on public charging points miss out on the electricity price cap protection available to home chargers.
He continued: “Households with EVs will feel the impact of higher bills first. With 1.8 million EV drivers now on UK roads, this is no longer a niche issue.
“The Chancellor should act to ensure these households are protected from the knock-on costs of the Middle East conflict.”
Delvin Lane, chief executive of InstaVolt, Britain’s largest ultra-rapid EV charging operator, said: “The UK charging network is growing rapidly and giving drivers the confidence to go electric, but tax policy needs to keep pace with the transition.
“Reducing VAT on public charging would immediately improve fairness and support more drivers making the switch.”
Chancellor Rachel Reeves revealed in her November 2025 budget that the 5p-per-litre reduction in fuel duty brought in by the Conservative government in March 2022 would only be maintained until the end of August 2026, with rates then steadily climbing back to March 2022 levels over the following five years.
However, the Government is facing mounting pressure to freeze fuel duty as the typical cost of a litre of petrol and diesel has rocketed by 10p and 20p respectively since the Middle East crisis erupted on February 28. Iran’s threats have choked a crucial oil and gas shipping route, causing prices to soar.
