Help Guide

Be.EV electric charging help guide: Let’s keep you on the road…

Have you recently switched to electric? If so, welcome to the future; it’s the smarter – and cleaner – way to get around. Good for you, and good for your community.

Though driving an electric vehicle means you will have to get used to a new way of charging your car, it is much simpler than you might think, once you get the hang of the basics. Whether a quick ‘top-up’ or a full recharge, it really depends on how far – and how often – you drive.

Quick links

• Planning your journey
• How to charge your electric vehicle on the go
• How long will it take to charge my car?
• How long does it take to charge an electric car from 10% full to 80%?
• Using a Be.EV Fast Charger: Here’s how
• Using a Be.EV Rapid Charger: Here’s how
• Charging my vehicle: How much will it cost?
• Can my electric car use any type of fast or rapid charger?
• Choosing your EV charging cable
• AC vs DC charging: what is the difference?
• Cable basics: at a glance
• My car won’t charge – What do I do?
• Have another question or two?

Planning your journey

Before you set off on any journey, it's important to do a bit of preparation. In this handy guide, you can find out where your nearest Be.EV public charging points are, saving you from the stress of searching and of going too far out of your way.

It’s all part of our mission to build a truly user-friendly and effortless charging network across Greater Manchester and the North.

How to charge your electric vehicle on the go

There are two main types of chargers across the Be.EV network - Fast and Rapid. These relate to different charging speeds - both will serve your day to day needs well, but Rapid chargers will allow you to charge your car more quickly than Fast. Both are really easy and effortless to use. However, it is worth watching our handy how-to-use videos if you haven’t charged with us before, so you can get it right the first time, every time. Watch our how-to-use our Rapid and Fast Chargers videos

How long will it take to charge my car? 

One of the most common questions for electric vehicle drivers is how long it takes to charge an electric car. After all, nobody wants to be waiting around longer than they need to! Unfortunately, there is no easy answer to this: the time it takes to charge an electric car can be as little as 20 minutes or more than 12 hours. This depends on a number of factors, including the size of the battery in your car and the speed of the charging point you are using. 

A quick overview

• A typical electric car (60kWh battery) will take around an hour to charge from empty to full with a 50kW charging point. 
• Lots of drivers find it’s more efficient to ‘top up’ your car’s charge as you go, rather than wait to fully recharge a battery from empty to full. 
• Naturally, the bigger your car’s battery and the slower your charging point, the longer it takes to charge. 

How long does it take to charge an electric car from 10% full to 80%?

* Vehicle charging from 10% to 80%

Don’t see your car model in the table above? The EV database has lots of useful info across lots of EVs currently on the road.

Just so you know, to help protect your battery, the charging speed is reduced as the battery gets closer to full charge. This means that the battery’s lifespan is protected as much as possible, even with regular use.

Using a Be.EV Fast Charger: Here’s how

Familiarise yourself with our video guides to help you charge your vehicle while you’re out and about.

You can also follow these handy instructions below.

Using the app on a Be.EV Fast Charger

	1. To charge your car using the Be.EV app, download the app via Apple App Store® for iPhone® or Google Play (for Android phones such as Samsung or Huawei).
	2. Get your charging cable and plug one end into your car.
	3. Open up the Be.EV app and make sure you’re signed in.
	4. If you’ve allowed location services on your phone, the app will automatically find the charging station you’re trying to use.
	5. If you can’t find the location, simply type in the number you see at the top of any charging machine.
	6. Once the machine has located you, tap the socket you want to use on your phone and hit ‘Start Charge’.
	7. Plug your cable into the charger. You’ll receive a notification on your app that your car is charging – and you should see a blue light to indicate the charge has been successful.
	Don’t forget to check any parking restrictions in the bay you’re parked in too.

Using your RFID card on a Be.EV Fast Charger

Have a Be.EV membership RFID card? It looks a lot like a credit card if you have never heard of that term before.

You can use it on any of our fast chargers - simply tap it against the charging machine after plugging one end of your charging cable into your car and when instructed to do so on the screen, plug the other end of the cable into the charger.

Now the charge is activated, plug the other end of your cable into the Be.EV charger – and begin charging!

Using WebPay on a Be.EV Fast Charger

Visit webpay.be-ev.co.uk via your phone’s web browser and type in the charger ID that you’ll find on the top of any of Be.EV’s chargers. Leave the webpage open until you’ve finished charging – and then click ‘End Session’ on the machine.

Using a Be.EV Rapid Charger: Here’s how

Our Rapid Charger ‘how to’ video covers everything from paying by contactless payment to using your RFID card. Alternatively, follow the instructions below.

Using the app on a Be.EV Rapid Charger

	1. To charge your car using the Be.EV app, download the app via Apple App Store® for iPhone or Google Play for Android.
	2. Open up the app and make sure you’re signed in to your account.
	3. If you’ve allowed location services on your device, your app will locate where you are and find your charging station.
	4. If your location services aren’t enabled, just tap the screen to wake up the charging point and enter the number seen at the top right of the machine.
	5. Your app will then be able to find the charging station. Simply select the connector for your car, which is based on the model of your vehicle.
	6. Once the cable is unlocked, just plug it into your car.
	7. Once it’s plugged in, head back to the screen on the machine and start charging – it’s as easy as that!
	Psst: please don’t forget to check if there are any parking restrictions where you are.

Using your Be.EV RFID card on a Be.EV Rapid Charger

There’s a helpful instruction video or simply follow the instructions below. 

Have a Be.EV membership RFID card? It looks a lot like a credit card if you have never heard of that term before.

If so, simply tap it to the bottom left of the screen on the charging point machine. Once authorised, you’ll need to select the correct cable for your car, based on its model.

Plugged in? Now, simply head back to the screen and tap ‘Start Charging’, making sure you check for any parking restrictions where you are.

Using contactless on a Be.EV Rapid Charger

Make charging your vehicle simple and effortless by using contactless to pay for your charge.

Use either a credit card, debit card or Apple Pay.

Start by tapping the screen on the charging point machine, before tapping ‘Contactless Payment’. Then simply tap your card on the contactless reader and click ‘Start Charge’.

You’ll then need to select the right cable for your car, before charging it up – and away you go!

Using WebPay on a Be.EV Rapid Charger 

Visit webpay.be-ev.co.uk via your phone’s web browser and type in the charger ID that you’ll find on the top of any of Be.EV’s chargers. Leave the webpage open until you’ve finished charging – and then click ‘End Session’ on the machine. It really is as simple as that.

Charging my vehicle: How much will it cost?

We keep our prices as low as possible to ensure going electric isn’t just good for the environment, it’s good for your pocket too.

Also, if you’re a Be.EV member, you’ll enjoy discounted rates across our network, with existing charging fees as follows:

Rapid Charging Points

• £0.59/kWh – Pay As You Go (PAYG)*
• £0.56/kWh, Be.EV member rate using Be.EV membership card or App

Fast Charging Points

• £0.49/kWh –  Pay As You Go (PAYG)*
• £0.46/kWh, Be.EV member rate using your Be.EV membership card or App

* The Pay As You Go rate applies when paying by Contactless or WebPay.

Be.EV Taxi Drivers

• £0.49 taxi membership rate (available at dedicated taxi-only rapid charge points).

All rates are inclusive of VAT, at 20% following the HMRC ruling in May 2021.

Can my electric car use any type of fast or rapid charger?

The short answer is yes (and no), as it depends on what type of connector your car uses. It's worth knowing which cable connector you have in order to charge at the maximum speed for your car. Using a charger with a greater capacity than your individual cars’ charging spec won't get you topped up any quicker – but the car will automatically limit the amount of power it receives to prevent damage to the battery. 

Our advice is to always to be clear which charger is most suitable for your model of car before you start the charging process. 

Choosing your EV charging cable  

Across the UK, you’ll find some chargers have a cable already attached, ready to use, whilst others will need you to attach your own cable. Your electric vehicle should come with a cable issued as standard, which you can easily plug into your vehicle and into any Be.EV charging station that doesn't have a cable already. 

On the Be.EV network, all our rapid chargers have cables attached ready for you to use and it’s just a matter of picking the right cable (more on this below). Our fast chargers, however, require you to attach the cable that came with your car.

Your car may have also come with another cable that plugs in to a traditional 3 pin plug. These are for charging at home and are not needed when charging on the Be.EV network.

AC vs DC charging: what is the difference?

There are four types of cable and plug for charging your electric vehicle. Two use alternating currents (AC), for charging generally up to 22kW (depending on your car) and two use direct currents (DC) which allow for the quicker ‘rapid’ and ‘ultra-rapid’ charging.

AC power comes directly from the grid. But to charge an electric vehicle, it needs to be converted to DC. A converter, which is usually built into an electric car, usually does this job. But if you are using a DC charger, the conversion takes place within the DC charger itself.

This therefore enables DC charging to be much faster than AC charging. However, not all cars are compatible with DC charging, so you’ll need to check your car is compatible before choosing this option. 

AC charging, which draws less power from the grid, does take longer to reach a full charge – but is sometimes cheaper per kWh.

Cable basics: at a glance 

Before you start charging, always make sure you’re aware of which cable is suitable for your model of car. 

Most new electric vehicles come with a cable that you can plug into your vehicle and with a charger to use for AC charging. Many cars also come with an equivalent cable that can be plugged into your traditional 3 pin plug.

Cable with 3 pin plug

These come with the majority of new electric vehicles. The rate of charging with this cable is very slow and is therefore only recommended when other charging options are unavailable, or if you are planning to charge your car at home over longer periods. 

Type 2 cables

These enable you to charge your car in a shorter time than a 3 pin plug. They are used by a majority of home/work chargers, as well as AC public charging posts.

Introducing CHAdeMO and CCS

When it comes to rapid charging, there are two types of connectors, namely CHAdeMO and CCS. These are rapid-charging DC sockets, which allow for faster charging. These chargers have the cables tethered, which means you don’t have to use your own – you simply have to choose the correct one that fits your car.

My car won’t charge – What do I do?

Be.EV users tell us our charging points are quick and easy to use. If you do run into a rare issue, please let us know about it via our contact us form or by calling our 24/7 helpdesk. 

If your car won’t charge, it could be that your payment details aren’t up to date.

It’s easy to update them, though – simply log into your Be.EV account (or create one via be.EV.co.uk and add your new or existing details).

If the bank details you originally used to set up a direct debit on your account have since changed, just send us an email at support@be-ev.co.uk with the subject line ‘Update Payment Details’. Make sure you send the query from the email address you used to register your account and a member of our team will delete your existing payment details.

We’ll then email you within 48 hours to let you know when you can log back into your account and add your new details.

Have another question or two?

Don’t see the information you need here in our guide? No problem. We’re here to answer any of your queries – big or small. 

Get in touch with Be.EV

Email: via our online contact form at www.be-ev.co.uk/contact

Phone: 0800 917 3208

You can also find us on Twitter @beEV_Charging