Installing an Electric Vehicle Charger in the listing

[Felicity11]

Guests who drive Electric Vehicles, simply get it. Reward them with built-in Level 2 chargers and welcome these environmentally conscious guests with the right resources

Jennifer: Canada has committed to having a full and vibrant Electric Vehicle Fleet by 2030. To support this achievement, there is a need for significant infrastructure to appear throughout the country. I can support such initiatives as a host by making chargers available in our listing.

Here’s how we can get a Level 2 charger installed there are various companies that support incentives/mapping out local chargers or being a part of the network such as:

• Plugshare 
• ChargeHub

There are also ways I can support my guests by making an outdoor 110v plug available for my guests to charge their cars overnight. Although it is a slower option, it is still a good one. Once I’ve established a way for guests to charge, I can go back to my Airbnb listing and add it as an amenity. It would be important to let the guests know that we can support EV charging. 

Felicity : It sounds like a great idea to be able to help our guests cut their transport emissions when traveling to our country, by helping them travel in an EV. I’ve heard many car hire companies are now increasing their supply of EV’s as the demand grows and the charging networks around the country grow.  In some parts of the world and parts of Australia the infrastructure to support this is simply not in place yet. For many guests traveling to our country, renting an EV can not only be a great way to create less emissions but also save money.

Here are a few highlights of what we think about installing an electric vehicle charger : 

• Electric Vehicle owners already have an understanding for the importance of reducing emissions.
• Guests who support the environment, and drive electric vehicles often are more cognizant of ways to reduce energy consumptions
• Overall, Guests who drive Electric Vehicles would like to have a Level 2 charger that can be used without additional expense to the visit.  

We are also sharing a few tips we came across for our fellow hosts, that we find valuable to consider while making such a decision : 

• Suggest to  guests that if they are thinking of renting a car - what about an EV! 
• If we do not have EV charging at our listing, mention where the closest chargers are and the type of chargers that are available.
• Considering what are the best EV charging apps for guests to use in our country to locate EV charging locations? If we don’t know, we would ask in our Airbnb hosting community group! 
• Mention any local tips about a reliable car rental company or nearby EV Chargers that are free to use
• If you have an EV charger be sure to specify the type of charger and speed.
• Remember to take a photo and add it to your listing photos and add the details to the photo description also add the details of the charger to your listing description.  If you have an EV charger remember to tick the box in the amenities section. 

We would love to know your thoughts on Electric Vehicle chargers and invite you to participate in this discussion : 

1. What are the best EV Charging apps in your country? 
2. Do you offer EV charging at your place?
3. Where else do you promote your EV charging facilities?
4. Do you know of any special charging deals for customers who rent EV’s in your country?
5. Have you seen an increase in bookings because you offer EV charging?
6. Do you charge guests to charge up at your place? How do you know how much to charge a guest? 
   
   This post is co-authored by Host Advisory Board members Felicity from Australia and Jennifer from Canada.The article is written based on our own personal experiences and opinions as a sustainable Host.

[Emilia42]

My last guest who asked to charge their electric vehicle cranked the heat up to 75 degrees on a beautiful summer day. So I am not sure how much they simply "get it."

[Stephen1431]

@Felicity11 We had our first request from a guest to charge their EV rental car.  They were told that they only needed a power point.  That sounds easy enough to provide as we have outdoor waterproof power points we can easily provide a lead for.  However the issue was how much do we charge for it.  Obviously we don't want to make it difficult and costly by having to monitor usage and charging by usage.  So we had to charge a fixed cost.  Granted some batter might not be empty but we don't have any control over when the guest will decide to charge and how much usage they will incur. We definitely do not think it is good to include the cost in the nightly fees as it will bump up the cost per night for those who do not require EV charging for their electric cars.  IMO, EV charging is like petrol for the guests.  That should be borne separately from their accommodation. Especially with the rising cost of power these days, it is simply not financially viable to include in the nightly rate.  We do have solar but I imagine the guests are usually out in the day driving around and want to charge their car in the night.  The night time peak rates are expensive and we can't restrict when guests will charge their cars.  So our solution was to say to the guest that we can provide charging from our outdoor power point for AUD20.00 fixed rate (any extra couple of dollars will be service fee for the provision of the service), regardless of the battery level they start charging at.  Then we also provide information of where they can get it charged where they can pay by the usage if they prefer.  So the option is there if they need to use it but will probably cost a little bit more for them for the convenience we provide.  We use this website to calculate the estimated charge and based on that, we reckon it'll be between AUD15-20 to charge a car battery from empty. https://www.greenvehicleguide.gov.au/Calculators/HomeChargingCalculator

[Laurelle3]

@Stephen1431  thank you for giving the Australian calculation page to look up. With this information for a small car for 8 hrs and our electricity prices it works out at to $12. 

Yes the question is still do you charge or not. Yes we do have an outside side power point have just bought an extension lead for this purpose of charging cars. 

We have ticked the box of EV chargers on Airbnb our next thing to do is take a photo of both together and add to our photo page.

After reading topics on charging for extras, I am going to put the EV charging  under Management fees after the first person staying and uses it. Still no one to date to book with an EV,  but have had a private booking asking if we had an outside powerpoint.

I think it will be awhile before we see someone with an EV as we live 200km from Sydney. Very few fast charges on the way and city relatives have said it is a talking point on the media where they are, etic, and a future apps. The talk is the government is taking the discount off the cars and giving to community installation of more EV chargers. 

It is a game of wait and see in Australia is as our country is large compared to Europe and we don't have the population for it to become more viable. However, we are trying to lower our target for climate change.

[Felicity11]

hi @Laurelle3 

Great to hear from you and wonderful to hear that you can offer your guests the option to charge with a 3 pin plug.  As an EV travelling guest hen we travelled down your way we almost didn't make the booking as we could not find a host who had EV charging and there were no public facilities for us to use.   We were very grateful to find a host who we could stay with who would let us charge our car while we stayed and we paid them in cash for this. I would not expect to be able to charge my car for free - it would be nice but with the power prices as they are I do not mind paying for the convenience to charge where I am staying and I do not need fast or level 2 charging when I am staying a few days.   The government is trying to roll out as many fast chargers around the country and the are working with larger tourism operators to get this set up.  I cant wait to see more options on the road and at more Airbnb's!

[Felicity11]

Hi @Stephen1431 

Great to hear your experience in welcoming your first guest to your home with an EV and for being so welcoming. As an EV driver myself I plan my holidays around where I can charge my car.  Well done on working with your guests and finding a solution that works for you both.  I am sure they will be very grateful. I am seeing more support from Governments to roll out more level 2 and 3 chargers around the country to help get more EV's on the road.   I am also seeing start ups that are finding creative solutions for home owners to be able to easily charge guests to charge there car when staying .. I believe easy and cost effective solutions are on their way very soon. 

[Jane-Marie0]

@Felicity11 We have a level one charger, an additional place to plug in and also a level two charger we can share.  (We drive an EV.) I think Airbnb should add something on the listing beyond it being an amenity (like a charge logo or something) to highlight this feature. This should not be included in the cost of accommodation.  I have one or two guests who use this.  So far I have not charged them but can't afford to do it anymore.  The idea that these guests "get it" is ludicrous.  My guests who had EVs left lights on, turned on AC and left it going all day while out, and were not more conscious of energy use than anyone else. I have thought of charging $5 a day for the level one or pl;ug in and $10 if they use a level 2.  This would be if they plan to use it at all, as I can't be keeping track of when theya re and are not plugged in.

[Felicity11]

Hi @Jane-Marie0 

Great to hear from you and about your experience with guests who drive an EV.  That is disappointing to hear the guests left the lights and Air con on - some guests get it and well - some don't..   As an EV driver myself I do not expect to be able to charge for free - it would be nice but with power prices going up this is not really an option for most people. I am very happy to pay for the convenience to be able to charge my car when staying at an Airbnb.  I am seeing all sorts of creative solutions come about that allow an owner to use software with a charger that allows us hosts to be able to fairly charge a guest to charge their car.  I think this technology will become mainstream very soon. 

[Basha0]

I installed an ev charger. Here in Ca it wasn’t that expensive. We have two Ev’s so it made sense for us. I advertise it in my listing and I do not charge guests. Doesn’t cost that much