[Exlatccatsa]

I just got an email from Hive about their new EV charging service. Just over £400 for British Gas to fit and no subscription for the first year.
My Ohme cost just over £500 and no subscription ever!!
I cant see the advantage of Hive over Ohme especially if you're an Octopus Agile customer.

 

[Tony Hoyle]

A subscription for a charger? Is it a polar subscription or something?

 

[Exlatccatsa]

It just mentioned subscription free for the first year.
"

Be one of the first to try Hive EV Charging​ Hi​ If you have an electric vehicle, Hive EV Charging is the smart way to charge it. It saves you money and connects seamlessly with your Hive app. Before it goes live, we’re offering one hundred Hive customers the chance to be part of our trial – and we’d love you to be one of them.​

What is Hive EV Charging?​ Combining a 7kW smart EV home charger with your Hive app, Hive EV Charging is a brilliant way to optimise your electric vehicle charging.​ • Easy set-up: A British Gas engineer will install your 7kW EV home charger. • Save money: we’ll automate your charging to charge at the most cost-efficient times of the day. • Be more energy efficient: we can set your car to charge when there’s excess power on the grid from renewable energy sources. • Control it all from your Hive app. • Get Hive EV Charging for free for the first 12 months with our trial.

What you get​ We’re giving one hundred Hive customers the chance to try Hive EV Charging fully installed for a one-off introductory offer of £424* with no subscription cost for the first year.​ *(This price is subject to customer survey and grant eligibility and factors in the £350 OLEV grant which gives electric vehicle owners money off an electric charger and installation. We’ll apply for the OLEV grant on your behalf. If you’re not eligible, prices will start from £765)​

Who can take part?​ To take part in the trial, you must have off-street parking at your property.​ To be eligible for the OLEV grant you need to meet the Government’s criteria listed below:​ • Your electric vehicle was purchased after 1st October 2016, or is due to arrive in the next four months; • You are the registered keeper, lessee, or nominated driver of the electric vehicle; • This is the first EV charger to be installed at your address (to claim a second charge point, you must have two eligible vehicles at the same time for at least six months); and • You must intend to keep your electric vehicle for at least six months. Find out more about the OLEV grant here.​

We’d love to have you onboard​ Sign up before 13th December 2020 and if you’re selected, we’ll send you a quick online survey to make sure we have all the information we need for installation. When we know we’re good to go, we’ll be in touch with details on how to pay for your hardware as well as installation.​ It’s first come, first served – so sign up as soon as you can!​ The trial is set to start in January 2021.​ Terms and Conditions apply:​ For terms and conditions regarding your participation in the trial please click here.​ For terms and conditions regarding the supply and installation of your EV charger please click here.​

"

Here's the email..

 

[Kiltox]

My Ohme cost just over £500 and no subscription ever!!

No subscription for 3 years. They reserve the right to charge for the data subscription after that.

 

[Exlatccatsa]

No subscription for 3 years. They reserve the right to charge for the data subscription after that.

Thanks Kiltox, I hadn't picked up on that.

 

[dk6780]

A subscription for a charger? Is it a polar subscription or something?

No, a lot of these "smart" services will want to charge an ongoing fee to cover communications, server and support costs as well as an initial charge to cover hardware costs.