Charging will not start

Almost every case is one of the first three things below, so try them in this order.

1. Push the cable further into the charger

Before you take anything out, push the plug into the charging station socket with enough force to be sure it is all the way in. It is the quickest thing to try, and often enough on its own.

2. Reseat the cable, firmly

Take the cable out of both the car and the charger, then put it back, and push until it clicks. A Type 2 plug needs real force, and half in looks connected while reading as not connected.

If a plastic flap covers the socket on the charger, push it down and back with the plug as you insert it. It does not open on its own. See Choosing the right plug.

3. Check you picked the right plug

Most chargers have two plugs, side by side, physically identical. If you authorised plug A and your cable is in plug B, the charger sees nothing plugged into the plug that was paid for and nothing happens.

Tap Select plug and choose the other connector.

This is the most common cause of all. It is worth checking even when you are sure.

4. Look at what the status says

The plug's status tells you where you are:

• Preparing, and you have not paid: finish the payment and it starts.
• Preparing, and you have paid: the cable is probably not fully in. Back to steps 1 and 2.
• Not connected: the charger is offline. Leave the cable plugged in and see The station shows "Not connected".
• Suspended EV: the charger is offering power and the car is refusing it. See "Suspended EV".
• Faulted: the charger has a fault of its own. Try the other plug and tell us.

See What each station status means.

5. "Please remove the cable, re-plug it and press again the start button"

The charger refused the start command. It is asking for exactly what step 2 describes. Unplug at both ends, plug back in, press start again.

6. If it says there is a delay

"There is a delay in starting the charging session. Please make sure that you have plugged the cable correctly" appears when the charger has not confirmed the start after about 20 seconds. Make sure the cable is fully inserted in the charging station socket, pushing with enough force that it is all the way in. The start button becomes available again after about 30 seconds so you can retry.

Still nothing

Message us with which station and which plug you are at. We can see the charger from our side, restart it remotely, and contact the venue if the EV Charging Point needs someone physically there.

Tell us the station name as it appears in the app. Several chargers look identical and are metres apart, so "the one at the hotel" is often not enough to identify it.