Guidance

Residential and commercial chargepoints: become an authorised installer

Apply to be an authorised installer for OZEV residential and commercial chargepoint grant schemes.

From:
Office for Zero Emission Vehicles
Published
4 July 2022
Last updated
8 February 2024 — See all updates

To claim the Office for Zero Emission Vehicles (OZEV) residential and commercial chargepoint grants, you must apply to become an authorised installer.

Residential EV chargepoint grant schemes

Commercial EV chargepoint grant schemes

Once you have acknowledged receipt of your successful authorisation letter from the Office of Zero Emissions Vehicles (OZEV), you can start to install chargepoints under the scheme.

Only installations carried out after the date of authorisation will be eligible for OZEV grant funding.

Become an authorised installer representative

If you do not meet the requirement to be an authorised Installer, you could become an installer representative. This means you sub-contract the installation of chargepoints and make claims on behalf of installers.

If you wish to solely sub-contract the installation of chargepoints and make claims on behalf of installers, you should apply to be an OZEV authorised installer representative.

An authorised installer representative remains wholly responsible for ensuring that its installers abide by all the terms and conditions of the scheme.

As an installer representative, you must inform the DVLA of the sub-contracted installers and their  OZEV authorised installer numbers. Sub Contractors must already be OZEV Approved

If a sub-contracted installer fails to meet the terms and conditions of the scheme, OZEV may revoke the authorisation of the authorised installer representative

Grants will only be paid in relation to any residential or commercial approved equipment listed at:

Information required to apply to be an OZEV authorised installer

You must provide all information requested in the authorised installer application. If any information is missing, we will return your application and ask for the information.

OZEV, or its representatives, will process applications and confirm if your application has been successful by email.

You must provide your:

  • company name
  • location of UK head office
  • bank account details (bank account name, account number and sort code)
  • Competent Person Scheme name and number or Electrical Contracting Association (ECA) membership number
  • email address and phone number – for contact by OZEV and Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA)
  • information required for the authorised installer list

To apply to be an OZEV authorised installer representative, you must provide:

  • company name
  • location of head office
  • UK address
  • bank account details (bank account name, account number and sort code)
  • names and OZEV authorised installer numbers of subcontractors
  • public liability insurance certificate (minimum of £2 million indemnity)
  • email address and phone number (for contact by OZEV and DVLA)
  • information required for the authorised installer list
  • name and installer number for each sub-contractor

Apply to become an OZEV authorised installer

Accepted ECA membership for residential chargepoints

ECA - Electrical Contracting Association 

  • Electrical Installations within Dwellings (Part P)

Accepted ECA membership for commercial chargepoints

ECA - Electrical Contracting Association 

  • Commercial & industrial electrical installations

Accepted Competent Person Scheme (CPS) operators for residential chargepoints

Accepted CPS operators for commercial chargepoints

Where to find your CPS number

You can find your relevant CPS number by checking the:

  • Certificate Number on your NAPIT certificate (for example, NAP/12345/12/1)
  • Enrolment or Certification Number on your NICEIC certificate (for example, 123456789)
  • Company Reference Number on your SELECT certificate (for example, 12345)

Please make sure all your details are up to date with your CPS Provider and your company details match what is on your application form.

OZEV, or its representatives, will conduct checks on any party that applies for authorisation. For authorised installer representatives, these will include checking proof of public liability insurance (not employer’s liability insurance) and company details.

For installers, this will include proof of membership of the Electrical Association or Competent Person Scheme membership.

Checks may also be made on credit, fraudulent activity and customer feedback.

OZEV has the right to deny or suspend authorisation of an installer. Authorisation can be revoked at any time if the current terms and conditions of authorisation are breached.

If you are not sure if you are authorised or have any questions about the evidence you need to supply, contact the DVLA at installer.authorisations@dvla.gov.uk.

Authorised installer list

The authorised installer list allows chargepoint customers across the UK to locate and contact OZEV-authorised installers for chargepoint enquiries.

When you have been given authorised installer status, you will automatically be added to this list. It may take a week to update.

If your information is incomplete or needs to be updated, contact Installer.Authorisations@dvla.gov.uk with the appropriate information.

How to maintain your authorised installer status

To retain  OZEV approval, you must:

  • have submitted a claim within the past 2 years
  • remain part of a Competent Person Scheme  (for authorised installers only)

If you no longer want or are no longer able to maintain your status as an authorised installer or authorised installer representative, you should notify Installer.Authorisations@dvla.gov.uk.

If you are an authorised installer and you do not submit a claim within 2 years, or are no longer registered on the Competent Person Scheme you were accredited by when you applied to join the scheme,  OZEV  will remove you from the list of approved installers and you will no longer be eligible for grant funding.

If you are an authorised installer representative, it is your responsibility to check your authorised sub contractor maintains their Competent Person Scheme Accreditation and is still an authorised installer when they carry out installations on your behalf.

The government takes the safety of the public extremely seriously. If necessary, OZEV  will remove companies and individuals found to be performing unsafe installations from our schemes and inform their electrical trade associations of our decision.

Installers may not use the OZEV logo, which is for government use only. They may, however, state that they are OZEV approved for WCS / EVCG schemes.

Your responsibilities as an authorised installer

Only authorised installers can claim the grant on behalf of the applicant.

As an authorised installer, you must:

  • help the customer to understand if they meet the grant criteria
  • only install approved residential or commercial chargepoint models
  • test that all installed chargepoints work and meet safety requirements
  • provide and upload all documentation to submit the claim
  • not charge customers for the grant in advance of a claim
  • provide the customer with one invoice per application

For each installed chargepoint, you must:

  • ensure that the applicant meets the eligibility criteria
  • ensure that the installed chargepoint model is approved by OZEV
  • ensure that the installed chargepoint is tested to verify it’s fully functioning, can communicate usage data to a back-end management system to enable it to be sent onwards to OZEV and meets safety requirements
  • ensure that the supply, distribution equipment, chargepoint cabling and installation meet the commercial chargepoints minimum technical specification, and record and retain photographic evidence of this

  • retain all documentation pertaining to the installation for a minimum of 3 years, including:

    • installation and commissioning confirmations and certificates
    • photographs
    • customer declarations, signatures and full address
    • dates of installation
  • ensure the same chargepoint is not claimed for twice
  • notify the DNO of the installation in writing
  • issue a BS7671 Electrical Installation Certificate
  • ensure you have not previously claimed a grant for the chargepoints listed in a claim under the EV Infrastructure grant for staff and fleets or any other grant

Installers must not:

  • charge applicants for the grant in advance of payment being made by OZEV
  • inflate the costs of the chargepoints to benefit from a higher grant level
  • use the grant to cross-subsidise costs incurred in other parts of its business
  • apply for the voucher on the applicant’s behalf (such as by using installer’s name as the name of the business and listing the applicant’s address as one of the installation sites on the voucher application)

Ongoing data requirements

All sites must be able to communicate usage data to a back-end management system to enable it to be sent onwards to OZEV. The communication channels may include but are not limited to:

  • general packet radio services (GPRS) or cellular networks
  • other wireless means
  • wired network connectivity – optionally using a virtual private network (VPN)

Problems with signal strength

If using cellular or GPRS where the network capacity is not sufficient (such as low-quality network coverage via GPRS), installers must use additional means to boost the signal strength.

Problems with data supply

If data communication is not possible, you must declare this when submitting a claim on the online installer portal.

OZEV will monitor the number of installations from installers without data communications and reserves the right to request more information from any installers that are not communicating the required data. This may result in your authorisation being revoked.

Notifying your distribution network operator of installations

You must notify your local distribution network operator (DNO) of all installations you make so that they can evaluate the potential load on the grid and any network reinforcements. This notification must be compliant with the relevant DNO’s requirements.

If you do not notify the relevant DNO(s) of chargepoints installed and do not retain evidence of this notification, your authorisation may be revoked.

In your notification, you should either submit to each relevant DNO:

  • an online form per installation
  • a list of installations (with relevant details) in a single spreadsheet

Multiple notifications are encouraged.

The online form and multi-notification spreadsheet template, plus the regions each DNO covers and their contact details, can be found on the Energy Networks Association (ENA) website.

Penalties for improper conduct

OZEV reserves the right to withhold payment from the installer pending further investigation where there is reasonable evidence to suggest:

  • improper conduct on the part of the installer
  • the installer was aware of changes in circumstances that invalidate the applicant’s eligibility under the WCS and failed to inform OZEV

OZEV will revoke your installer authorisation and notify your Competent Person Scheme (CPS) operator if you, or one of your authorised sub contractors, does not comply with the scheme’s requirements. For example, if you:

  • fail to inform the relevant DNO of a chargepoint installation
  • fail to issue a BS7671 Electrical Installation Certificate
  • install a chargepoint that is found to be unsafe
  • complete an installation that does not meet the minimum technical standards required for the scheme
  • do not conduct a site survey, or proceed with an installation when the survey identified that the existing supply or distribution equipment was not safe
  • inflate costs to obtain a higher grant level
  • cross-subsidise costs incurred in other parts of the business

If there is any evidence of fraudulent activity or misuse of government funding by any party under the WCS, OZEV reserves the right to take whatever action it deems appropriate, including, but not limited to:

  • revising your grant level
  • legal action to reclaim monies paid
  • terminating the scheme
  • revoking the authorisation of any installer or approval of any manufacturer under the scheme

Chargepoint audits

We conduct on-site audits of installed chargepoints to ensure the requirements of the grant are met.

If a chargepoint is selected for audit, OZEV or its representatives will contact the relevant party for further information. Information requested may include all documentation pertaining to the installation, including:

  • installation and commissioning confirmations and certificates
  • business declarations, signatures and applicant details
  • dates of installation
  • any photographs taken at the time of installation demonstrating that the existing supply, distribution equipment, chargepoint cabling and installation meet OZEV requirements

We will seek to provide feedback to installers on any of their installations audited.

Updating your company details once you have been authorised

If any of your company details change from when you were authorised, you must send these changes to Installer.Authorisations@dvla.gov.uk.

This is to ensure our installer authorisation list is up to date and that you receive all communications sent from OZEV.

Changing your company name

If you are changing your company name, email your new company details to Installer.Authorisations@dvla.gov.uk. The authorisation team will carry out verification checks and will email you to confirm the changes have been made or to ask for further information if required. This may include requesting updated banking details.

If you have created or set up a new company that has a different entity to the company you are currently authorised for, you must reapply to be an OZEV authorised installer.

Once your new company has been approved please contact installer.authorisations@dvla.gov.uk to remove the authorisation for your old company listing.

Changing your bank details

If you change your bank details, email Installer.Authorisations@dvla.gov.uk. You will be sent a form to provide your new bank details.

Please note that it can take up to 6 weeks for bank details to be updated.

Deactivating your OZEV account

If you wish to be removed from the OZEV scheme, email Installer.Authorisations@dvla.gov.uk as soon as possible. We will deactivate your account once all claims have been settled.

Published 4 July 2022
Last updated 8 February 2024 + show all updates

  1. Extra information about maintaining your status as an authorised installer

  2. First published.

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