Electric cars cheaper to run than petrol versions as new subscription plan launched
The scheme costs £9.99 a month and gives access to rapid and ultra-rapid chargers across the country
A price war among electric vehicle (EV) charging networks has driven the cost of running an electric car below that of petrol vehicles for the first time.
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Be.EV — the Octopus Energy-owned charging network — has launched a new subscription plan allowing members to charge for 39p per kilowatt-hour (kWh) at any time of day or night.
The scheme costs £9.99 a month and gives access to all 800 of Be.EV’s rapid and ultra-rapid chargers across the UK.
Rival firm Ionity, backed by BMW, Ford and Hyundai, is currently offering a charging rate of 43p per kWh for drivers who take out an annual subscription of £86.99, though that deal ends on Thursday.
Analysis by The Times suggests Be.EV’s plan becomes the better-value option once a driver uses around 822 kWh a year— equivalent to about 2,900 miles of ultra-rapid charging.
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Below that level, Ionity’s lower annual fee makes it cheaper overall.
It means high-mileage motorway drivers will save more with Be.EV, while occasional users may still benefit from Ionity’s plan.
According to Be.EV, the average petrol driver spends £760 a year on fuel.
Under its new pricing model, an electric driver relying only on public charging would spend around £694 — saving roughly £66 a year.
That marks a key shift for EV owners without driveways, who have long been unable to benefit from cheaper home-charging tariffs.
Asif Ghafoor, chief executive of Be.EV, said: “It has been a sticking point that the cost benefits of electric car ownership should only be available to those with a driveway.
"With our new rate, the balance has finally tipped — it now makes financial sense for millions more people to buy an electric vehicle rather than a fossil fuel car.”
The government wants 80 per cent of new cars sold to be electric by 2030, sparking intense competition between charge-point operators.
Tesla has also reduced its Supercharger rates at several UK locations and cut the cost of its non-Tesla membership from £10.99 to £8.99 a month.
Networks including BP Pulse, Osprey and InstaVolt have followed suit, offering cheaper off-peak or member-only tariffs.