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Rapid Charger Roulette

MGE

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The majority of my MG ZS EV motoring will be covered by home charging but as we are heading to visit relatives in Scotland shortly I am confused by the myriad number of alternative Rapid Charges available at motorway services and other charge points we will call upon during the 345-mile journey.

I read the government has issued a paper which instructs Rapid Charge suppliers to ensure their points should be able to accept contactless debit card payment without the need for downloading apps or subscribing to their services. I noticed that new charges installed at a supermarket car park which have recently gone live allow for contactless payment but what of older units?

Can anyone advise how the RFID (?) card works and which or how many suppliers will I need to download apps which link to an account? Also when traveling in Scotland I gather there is another 'Scottish' card which is necessary for council run charges.

Any comments welcome.
 
The way I would manage it, assuming you are going to be using public chargers regularly enough, would be to register for a Polar plus RFID card and use Zap-Map to plan your route using the filter to only show BP chargemaster chargers (these allow use of Polar cards).
There are plenty of BP chargemaster chargers dotted around the country, they are relatively cheap and reliable, and there are plenty of other pay-as-you-go options for when your preferred chargers are not available to use.
For example as a backup, you can use Ecotricity chargers, though they are 39p/kWh and much less reliable. And there are plenty of other PAYG chargers (e.g. Instavolt @ 35p/kWh). These alternatives are more expensive but still an option where there are no BP chargers.

With Polar chargers, you tap the RFID card against the RFID reader on the charge post and once it has recognised you, it then asks you which type of charge you want (CCS/Chademo/Type 2) and once you have selected, you plug in and it starts charging.
I included the process in one of my videos here:
 
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For while you are up here in Scotland, take a look at:


and here for a map of their charge points (you'll also see these and others on Zap-Map):

On the plus side, most of ChargePlaceScotlands chargers are Freeeeeee ? Although the Access card costs £20/year, if you will be visiting for a while or more than once, it could be worth it.
 
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