Most home EV chargers need no planning permission at all. What they do need is the right approval from the network operator, notification under the building regulations, and an earthing arrangement that is safe for a car sitting on a wet drive.
Those three get mixed up constantly, including by installers who should know better. Here is what each one actually is.
The 30-second answer
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Planning permission? | Not for a normal domestic charger — it is permitted development |
| Listed building? | Listed building consent needed regardless |
| Network operator | Notify after (G98) up to 3.68kW; apply before (G99) above it |
| Building regs | Notifiable — a new circuit, so Part P applies |
| Earth rod | Usually not, if the unit has built-in PEN fault detection |
| Typical install | 7.4kW single phase, one day on site |
1. Planning permission
Installing a charge point at a house is permitted development under Class D, Part 2, Schedule 2 of the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) Order 2015. No application, no fee, no waiting.
The conditions are about size and position rather than power:
- Wall-mounted: it must not face onto and be within two metres of a highway, and the unit must be no more than 0.2 cubic metres.
- Upstand (a post on the drive): no higher than 2.3 metres, and again not within two metres of a highway.
- It must be removed when it is no longer needed for charging.
The exceptions are the ones that catch people out. A listed building needs listed building consent for the charger and often for the cable route as well. In a conservation area the position matters more, particularly on a frontage. And a flat or a leasehold property usually needs the freeholder's permission, which is a contractual matter rather than a planning one.
Planning is rarely the obstacle. The obstacle is the electricity supply — and unlike planning, that one can add weeks if it is left to the day of the install.
2. The network operator, and where 3.68kW comes from
Your DNO is the company that owns the cables in the street, not your energy supplier. In the north of England that is Electricity North West or Northern Powergrid depending on where you are. They have to know what is being connected, because a street full of chargers all pulling together is their problem to plan for.
There are two routes, and the split is at 3.68kW per phase, which is 16 amps:
- G98 — up to 3.68kW. Connect first, tell them within 28 days. This is the "just fit it" route.
- G99 — above 3.68kW. Apply before installation and wait for approval. A standard 7.4kW charger is in this bracket.
In practice most 7.4kW home installs go in under a G99 application that the installer submits and the DNO approves without fuss. It is not a hurdle, but it is a queue, and the queue is why the application should go in as soon as the job is agreed rather than the week before.
Your main fuse
Separate question, same conversation. Plenty of older houses have a 60A or 80A main fuse. Add a 32A charger to a house with an electric shower and an oven and the sums stop working, so either the supply needs upgrading to 100A or the charger needs load limiting.
The upgrade is the DNO's work, not ours, and they do not normally charge for it on a domestic supply — but it can take weeks, and it is the single most common reason an EV charger install gets delayed. Check the fuse rating early. It is printed on the fuse carrier in the meter cupboard.
3. Building regulations
An EV charger is a new circuit, which makes it notifiable under Part P in England and Wales. Either your installer is registered with a competent person scheme such as NAPIT and notifies it themselves, or it goes to Building Control as a paid application.
You should end up with an Electrical Installation Certificate and a building regulations compliance certificate. Keep both: they are asked for when you sell, and a buyer's solicitor will raise an enquiry about the charger.
4. The earthing question
This is the technical part that decides a chunk of the price, so it is worth understanding.
Most UK homes have a PME earthing arrangement, where the earth is combined with the supply neutral. That is perfectly safe indoors. Outdoors, holding a car that is earthed through the house, a fault on the supply neutral out in the street could in theory put a voltage on the car body.
There are two answers. The old one is an earth rod driven into the ground, which means digging and adds cost. The modern one is a charger with built-in PEN fault detection, which disconnects if it sees that fault developing. Ohme, Vorsprung, Zappi and most current units have it.
So if a quote includes an earth rod, ask why. Sometimes there is a good reason. Often it is a unit that does not have the detection built in, and a different charger removes the cost entirely.
5. Grants, and who actually gets one
The old OZEV grant for homeowners with off-street parking ended in 2022. What remains in 2026 is narrower: the EV chargepoint grant for flat owners and people in rented accommodation, and the separate grant for landlords installing across properties. If you own a house with a driveway, you are almost certainly paying the full cost.
Our EV charger cost guide has the current pricing.
What a proper quote should tell you
- Which charger, and whether it has PEN fault detection — because that decides the earth rod question
- Tethered or untethered, and if tethered, the cable length
- Who applies to the DNO, and whether the application has already gone in
- What happens if your main fuse needs upgrading — it should not be a surprise on the day
- That certification and notification are included, not an extra
- Whether the charger gets its own board, which is usually the tidier answer where the consumer unit is full or a long way from the parking space
The bottom line
Planning permission is almost never the issue for a home EV charger — permitted development covers it unless the building is listed. The things that actually matter are the DNO application above 3.68kW, the size of your main fuse, Part P notification, and an earthing arrangement that does not need a rod dug into your garden. Get those four right and the install itself is a day's work.
Thinking about an EV charger?
We handle the DNO application, the fuse upgrade if you need one, and the certification. NAPIT registered (78906). TrustMark Gov-Endorsed. Across Bradford, Leeds, Halifax, Manchester, Burnley, Blackburn, Preston and the M62 corridor.
EV charger service → Get a fixed price →