Choosing a charge point installer

[Alb]

I've started looking around for a local installer and selected 4 with good feedback on checkatrade (I'll call them Company A,B,C and D).
I contacted all of them using their online contact forms yesterday afternoon and sat back waiting to see how quick the initial response would be.
Company A contacted me later in the afternoon and we ran through a verbal description of what I wanted. They were insistent on working up a quotation without a survey and without photographs even though I offered. I asked for the option of having a Hypervolt and they had never heard of them!
Company B phoned before 8AM this morning when no-one was available. I have called back at least a dozen times today and the phone is never picked up.
24 hours after the initial enquiry, Company C and D haven't responded at all.
I did another search and came up with a company (Company E) that is Trustmark registered and so local they are within walking distance of my property! They were immediately contactable and the conversation with them felt like a breath of fresh air. They wouldn't entertain doing a quote without an on-site survey so they will be popping round at the end of the week. I get a good feeling about them but that might change when I see the numbers of course
Does it have to be this difficult?

 

[bloggsy]

Does it have to be this difficult?

Hi Joe - I sympathise with you! It should be straightforward but there's always 'something'!

It does sound like you've had a lucky escape with the first 2 installers so hope the other 2 are better. I'm sure you will, and forgive me if I appear to be insulting your intelligence ( ), but just make sure whichever installer you choose is properly certified/accredited!

Good luck - please keep us updated.

Cheers

Bloggsy

 

[Alb]

An update.

Company A - Sent me two estimates the day after our discussion (one with and one without a CU change) so top marks for alacrity. On the down side he has no idea how many existing circuits I have or how they are configured because he didn't ask. My confidence in the estimate has to be low.
Company B - I managed to make contact with an answering machine and left a request that they call me back. 24 hours later I have heard nothing.
Company C and D - Still no contact.
Company E - Not expecting contact until tomorrow.

On a side issue, I had the DNO in today to check out my main fuse. Happy to say that I already have a 100A fuse fitted so no problems there.

 

[AdamMGEV]

An update.

Company A - Sent me two estimates the day after our discussion (one with and one without a CU change) so top marks for alacrity. On the down side he has no idea how many existing circuits I have or how they are configured because he didn't ask. My confidence in the estimate has to be low.
Company B - I managed to make contact with an answering machine and left a request that they call me back. 24 hours later I have heard nothing.
Company C and D - Still no contact.
Company E - Not expecting contact until tomorrow.

On a side issue, I had the DNO in today to check out my main fuse. Happy to say that I already have a 100A fuse fitted so no problems there.

Dis you try that Evolution solutions I told you about? But maybe it depends on where you live if you can use them.

 

[RichardC]

Just had my Hypervolt installed by Plug It In Group. Excellent service.

I only wanted a 5m cable but it came with 7.5m. Easy to set up and connect to the WiFi network.

 

[Alb]

Dis you try that Evolution solutions I told you about? But maybe it depends on where you live if you can use them.

I was looking for someone reasonably local because I'm thinking about having some other work done at the same time.

 

[Alb]

Just had my Hypervolt installed by Plug It In Group. Excellent service.

View attachment 3855
I only wanted a 5m cable but it came with 7.5m. Easy to set up and connect to the WiFi network.

One of the downsides of this charge point is that it doesn't do rear entry cable. Are you happy with the blown brick?

 

[RichardC]

One of the downsides of this charge point is that it doesn't do rear entry cable. Are you happy with the blown brick?

The installer was very apologetic. I will stick some mortar on it. I don’t get stressed with things like that.

 

[Evan Jehlyst]

One of the downsides of this charge point is that it doesn't do rear entry cable.

It's pretty tight in there, PCB is almost full width and heigh - coming in from the back is impossible. Bottom entry only.

I don’t get stressed with things like that.

Definetly and totally 100%. Life's too short

An idea for future installs - mount a waterproof backing board of suitable [larger] size, come in [blow a hole] through the wall, through a neatly formed hole in the backing board 1 or 2" below the bottom, 90° bend, then straight in through the bottom entry grommet.
If backing board is a smooth spray painted in a semi-gloss it'll reflect and enhance the LED light show when it's charging.

Would love to see someone do this ?

 

[JCFlippen]

My Hypervolt unit is being fitted by a Gloucester electrician later this week. Quote issued after filling in preliminary form with plenty of photos so that hopefully no surprises in store For me.

 

[RichardC]

My Hypervolt unit is being fitted by a Gloucester electrician later this week. Quote issued after filling in preliminary form with plenty of photos so that hopefully no surprises in store For me.

Mine did not come with fitting instructions so the electrician had to access them via the Instavolt website. I also got one with a 7.5m cable even though the company had ordered the standard 5m one.

 

[Evan Jehlyst]

... I also got one with a 7.5m cable even though the company had ordered the standard 5m one.

you scored a freebie.
it's a £50 jump up in price for the 7.5m...

 

[RichardC]

My Hypervolt unit is being fitted by a Gloucester electrician later this week. Quote issued after filling in preliminary form with plenty of photos so that hopefully no surprises in store For me.

My Hypervolt unit is being fitted by a Gloucester electrician later this week. Quote issued after filling in preliminary form with plenty of photos so that hopefully no surprises in store For me.

How are you getting along with your new charger? There is a Facebook group if you wish to look. One of the guys from Hypervolt is a member as well.

Bei Facebook anmelden

Melde dich bei Facebook an, um dich mit deinen Freunden, deiner Familie und Personen, die du kennst, zu verbinden und Inhalte zu teilen.

www.facebook.com

 

[JCFlippen]

Sorry not up to speed with Facebook operation. My Hypervolt seems to be working ok.Not into timed charging yet as ironically no time to investigate this feature. Still waiting for Octopus to fit smart meter in August. Had excellent electrician to fit the charger- Severn Sparks Ltd.

 

[RichardC]

Sorry not up to speed with Facebook operation. My Hypervolt seems to be working ok.Not into timed charging yet as ironically no time to investigate this feature. Still waiting for Octopus to fit smart meter in August. Had excellent electrician to fit the charger- Severn Sparks Ltd.

There is a known fault with the app. No matter what you type in for the tariff it calculates any usage at 14.15p/kWh. Hypervolt are aware of it and an update for the app is due shortly.

 

[Alb]

I should really bring this story up to date.
When I last posted about progress, I was expecting contact from Company E the following day (Friday 2nd July) so I'll pick up from there.

It will perhaps come as no surprise that the 2nd came and went with no contact being made. I called them on the 3rd and did manage to contact someone who promised I'd get a call on the 5th (Monday).
As a belt and braces exercise, I called again on the 5th to remind them that I was awaiting contact and I received an assurance that I would definitely be contacted that day. In the event, I received an email which was sent at 1651hrs so a bit last minute, but it did satisfy the promise.
The email proposed a site visit the following day and this took place as scheduled. I was confident at this stage that I'd get an accurate quote based on good knowledge of the actual work required. Note - I'd decided by now that the work package was going to include a Consumer Unit change so it was more than just an EV Charge Point install.
More than a fortnight later (17 days in fact) I'd heard nothing so I called them and it was obvious that they had done absolutely nothing. I received apologies and a promise that a quote would be sent out by the end of the day.
They did at least achieve that but when I went through the quote it was thin on detail, high on price and didn't include the Hypervolt box I asked for, maintaining in fact that Hypervolt only sold to end customers so it was impossible for them to supply one. They also revealed at this stage that they weren't actually OZEV registered so couldn't process the grant!

In the meantime, I'd had further contact with Company A. It turned out that they work a two stage quotation process. Stage one determines if they are in an acceptable ballpark whilst stage two is based on a site visit and detailed knowledge of the work package. Although previously unaware of Hypervolt, they took the initiative and are now signed up with them as authorised installers.
Once they were registered, they supplied an updated quote based on the Hypervolt rather than the Zappi originally suggested and this knocked £100 off the bottom line.
I was interested enough in their quote to justify going on the the second stage (site visit) so that went ahead yesterday. As I am also an electrical engineer by profession, we discussed every single aspect of the job in minute detail so I'm completely content that there are no uncertainties (the company owner was on-site for about an hour and a half in total!). In complete contrast to Company E, his updated quote was in my inbox by the end of the evening.

I accepted the quote today and the job is scheduled for the third week in August.

Postscript - I asked whether they would mind me recording the installation and publishing it online, and received an OK so if there is any interest, I might publish it here.