Andy Burnham‘s government has followed through on a previous promise to cut red tape for people installing home pavement charges. From today (21 October), you no longer need planning permission to install a channel across the pavement for access to home charging.

The government says that the changes to the rules can will save EV drivers up to £300 in planning permission charges. It does remain an expensive option to install a pavement gulley at home, but crucially brings big savings on electric running costs in the long term.

The changes were promised back in April under previous prime minister Keir Starmer, along with the introduction of a grant to help offset the cost of pavement gulley installation. Carmaker Vauxhall also introduced an offer with charge provider Kerbo to boost the number of pavement gullies being installed. 

Transport department minister Simon Lightwood was full of beans about the changes: “We’re saving drivers up to £300 off the cost of installing home charging by cutting unnecessary red tape. The EV transition is in full swing – sales are up 36% on last year and over 190,000 have saved thousands making the switch in the last year alone.”

Related changes to planning permission are intended to make it easier for charge point operators to install new charging hubs, cutting down on the requirements for permission from local authorities. 

The government also says that it has launched two consultations that are aimed at making home charging easier – it’s considering new rules to make it harder for landlords to refuse tenants’ installation of EV chargers, as well as rules that will require charge points to be installed in new and refurbished car parks. 

Interested in getting a pavement gulley installed? Read our handy guide