Dos and don’ts at the charging station

There are many unwritten rules for how to behave, in almost any situation. What is considered right and wrong is a matter of opinion and the answers will vary among different people. Still, there are some ground rules that most people hold for true.

In this article we will discuss behaviour at the EV charging station. We will try to answer what you should do and what you should absolutely not do, but of course opinions may differ about this as well as about other aspects of etiquette.

What to do at the charging station

  • Charge and move along – Space and resources are limited, especially those that are popular. This applies to the EV charging station as well. In fact, there are still many stations that you can use free of charge, but that’s not an invitation to park and stay indefinitely. The case, in fact, is quite the opposite. When it’s your turn, you should get your vehicle charged, but when done you should give up your spot to the next driver, as soon as possible.
  • Don’t be greedy – Are you on a long trip? Then sure, get fully charged. However, there are many situations where you can get along with less than 100 percent charge and if there are others waiting then perhaps you should settle for less than full charge, because someone else might actually need it.
  • Share your secrets and tip off others – Many EV drivers use apps to share tips and information about charging stations and availability. Sadly, they tend to be used more for shaming offenders than for sharing actual information. Don’t do that! Instead, share information that’s really useful to others, looking to top up their batteries.

What not to do at the charging station

  • Don’t unplug others – It should be obvious, really, but apparently it’s not. Just because someone isn’t by their vehicle at the time, that doesn’t mean that you can just unplug them to charge your own vehicle. The other person probably has a good reason to be charging their vehicle and they probably have an equally good reason to not be there at the time.
  • Be polite, even to offenders – Yes, people are idiots and especially people driving gas or diesel powered vehicles, parking in designated EV charging spaces. But then again, they may not be idiots at all. They may have made an honest mistake. While it may seem odd, it’s possible to be all stressed out and not really notice where you park. Or, there may be an emergency, forcing someone to stop their vehicle at the first possible spot. Or something else may have happened, that you don’t know about. Calm down and leave a polite not, or if you see the offender, explain to them what the problem is. It may actually help.