Choosing the right plug

Why the app asks you to pick

Most chargers have two plugs, usually labelled A and B, or Plug 1 and Plug 2. They are physically identical and sit side by side, so the app cannot tell which one you have walked up to. You have to tell it.

Getting this wrong is the single most common reason a charge does not start. The app happily authorises plug A while your cable is in plug B, and then nothing happens, because as far as the charger is concerned nothing is plugged into the plug that was paid for.

If a session will not start, tap Select plug and choose the other one.

Chargers with a cable, and chargers without

• With a cable attached. Take the plug off its holster and put it in your car. Nothing else needed.
• With a socket instead. You supply the cable. It needs to be a Type 2 cable, which is the one most electric cars in Europe come with. One end goes in the car, the other in the charger.

The app tells you which kind you are looking at before you start.

The plastic flap

Some sockets have a hinged plastic cover over them, to keep rain out. It does not lift away on its own and it is not broken. Push it down and back with the plug itself as you insert the cable, and the plug goes in behind it.

Drivers regularly conclude a charger is faulty when this is all that was in the way.

Push until it clicks

A Type 2 plug needs a firm push. Half in looks plugged in and reads as not connected. If the app says the cable is not detected, take it out and put it back with some force. See Charging will not start.

AC and DC

Most of our stations are AC, typically 7 kW to 22 kW, which suits a stop of an hour or more. Some are DC fast chargers, which are much quicker and are marked as DC in the app.

On AC, the speed is limited by whichever is lower: the charger, or your car's on-board charger. A car that accepts 7.4 kW will not go faster on a 22 kW charger. That is the car, not the station.