Top tips for electric company car drivers

A company car needs to be a jack of all trades – commuting cross-country one day and navigating meetings and tight city centre streets the next, while also carrying the family to the supermarket or heading to the beach with friends at the weekend.

Moving from the familiarity of petrol or diesel to an all-electric model may give you pause for thought. But, going electric doesn’t mean changing how you drive or how you use your company car.

With impressive range, easy cost-effective charging, tech that makes driving simpler and safer, and passenger and luggage space that is as adaptable as it is practical, all-electric models like the Skoda Enyaq iV make brilliant company cars – fitting into your work and home life with ease. They’re also incredibly cost-effective to run, with astonishingly low benefit-in-kind (BIK) contributions.

All you need to get the most from them is a bit of extra knowledge about how electric cars work best and a few easy-to-action tips. So, here’s some simple advice for making the all-electric switch on your next company car even easier.

Learn more about the Skoda Enyaq iV.

Re-think your range – and how you use it

Range is everything for company cars – especially for longer journeys. But there’s no need to worry about range with the latest breed of electric cars. Just re-think it.

The all-electric Skoda Enyaq iV 80 model offers up to 331 miles from its 82kWh battery, based on the WLTP testing cycle and depending on how you drive.^[1] That’s more than the distance between London and Newcastle – a journey you wouldn’t do without stopping for a break. Add in a top-up charge while you’re paused for lunch or a quick coffee, and you can go even further.

Alternatively, if you do business locally, a full 331-mile charge of the Skoda Enyaq iV 80’s 82kWh battery could deliver up to 11 days’ worth of 20-mile to 30-mile commutes – leaving you plenty of opportunities to top up in between.^[1]

Know your battery to get the best from it

If you drive a petrol or diesel company car, you may be used to running it to empty, then brimming it full again with a quick splash-and-dash fuel stop. Electric car charging is a little different, but all it takes is a subtle change in mindset.

Electric cars work best between 20% and 80% battery capacity. So, start thinking about recharging at 20%, which will typically still leave you with around 65 miles of range in the Skoda Enyaq iV 80 – giving you plenty of time to find your nearest charging option, whether it’s a cost-effective long-stop charge or a fast midday range boost to get to your next destination.

Equally, as a battery approaches 100% capacity the rate of charging often slows down to guard battery performance. That means you end up charging for longer, without gaining as much charge. So, keeping your battery charge between 20% to 80% means you’ve always got range in hand, and top-up charges are quicker. 

Know the charging network 

Charging an electric car is second nature once you’ve done it a few times. And, with over 40,000 public charging connections in the UK it’s easy to find a charging point near you – whether work takes you on the motorway, into town, or out in the country.

The UK’s charging infrastructure has also been designed intelligently. Fast 7kW to 22kW public chargers for slower, more cost-effective charging tend to be in urban city centre car parks and shopping centres and retail parks. Rapid 25kw to 100kW chargers and ultra-rapid 100kW+ chargers are found on motorways and A-roads – delivering fast boosts of charge to get you moving again quickly.

Thanks to a built-in e-Sim that delivers a permanent internet connection, the Skoda Enyaq iV makes finding public charging easy, with a real-time database of public chargers for navigation on the large 13-inch central touchscreen display. 

Equally, you can pre-plan door-to-door navigation using Skoda’s Remote App on your smartphone – with the app suggesting the most energy-efficient route, while also helping you find the best charging options along your route and car parks with charging points near your destination, then syncing the details with your car. 

Fit charging around your day

The best way to approach electric car charging is ‘grazing’. Whenever your car is parked, pick somewhere where you can top up your battery at an appropriate speed and cost while the car is static. That way, charging fits neatly around work or leisure.

Travelling to a meeting, but want to pause for a coffee, a quick lunch or to check your emails? The all-electric Skoda Enyaq iV 80 can be recharged from 0% to 80% in as little as 38 minutes with its optional 125kW DC charging capability. So, find your nearest 100kW+ rapid charger (typically located at motorway service stations or near major A-roads) for a rapid top-up.^[2]

If you’re heading to a long meeting in town, find a nearby car park with a fast 7kW to 22kW charger to top up slowly and cost-effectively while you’re sealing the deal over a sales session in the board room or a long lunch. Equally, if you’re staying overnight from home, find a hotel with on-site charging or charging points in a nearby car park – refilling your battery while you relax with a good book, or get tucked up in bed.

Cut costs and save time with overnight charging

Whatever your diary, long slow charging – especially overnight charging – is the best way to get the most charge into an electric car in the most cost-effective way. It also saves you time, as you’re recharging your car at a time when you’re not using it.

Around 80% of electric car charging is currently done at home. Thanks to the UK government’s Electric Vehicle Homecharge Scheme, you can get 75% (up to £350) towards installation of your home wallbox – with a 7kWh-11kWh ‘smart’ unit offering the best balance for overnight recharging. 

With this, a company car driver doing 10,000 miles a year in the Skoda Enyaq iV 80 could cut their annual fuel bill to around £405, based on an average home electric tariff of 16.5p per kWh. That’s the equivalent of around 4p per mile.

If you’re away from home overnight, find a fast 7kW to 22kW public charger for the most cost-effective top-up. Some public car parks offer free charging as part of your parking fee, while an increasing number of hotels are offering on-site charging.

Public charging costs vary significantly between providers: from monthly subscriptions to one-off pay-as-you-go rates, either charged by the minute or by the kWh. But, with an average rate of 22p per kWh, a typical 20% to 80% charge for an Enyaq iV 80 will cost £10.80 for a 200-mile range boost – around 5.4p per mile.

Even if you can’t charge long and slow, the cost of using a rapid 50kW public charger for a quick morning range boost is still cheaper than petrol or diesel. A 20% to 80% charge for a Skoda Enyaq iV 80 on a 50kW charger with a 30p per kWh rate costs around £14.70 for a 200-mile range boost. That’s still just 7p per mile.

Control your charging with your smartphone

Using Skoda’s Remote App, you can sync your smartphone with your Skoda Enyaq iV to pre-set charging times and how much energy you’re adding to ensure you get the right amount of charge at the most cost-effective rates. Equally, you can check that your car has all the range you need for your next journey. And, if there’s a problem with the charger that stops the process, you’ll know well in advance.

This is particularly useful when it comes to pre-warming your batteries and your car Electric car batteries deliver the best range when they’re at the right temperature – particularly pre-warming them on colder winter days. Equally, you want the interior of your car to be toasty when you get in.

Using the Skoda Enyaq iV’s optional Heat Pump and the Skoda Remote App on your smartphone to ‘pre-warm’ your Skoda Enyaq iV before you start your journey, while it’s still plugged in and charging, means that your car has the maximum amount of range and is working at its best from the off.

Use driving tech to enhance your range

The new wave of all-electric cars, like the Skoda Enyaq iV, lead the way with advanced in-car technology that makes driving easier, safer and – crucially – more energy-efficient. That means you get more range from your electric car, without changing how you drive.   

The Skoda Enyaq iV has five different driving modes to suit different conditions and driving styles. Eco Mode delivers the Enyaq iV’s electric power and torque more gradually and efficiently, while also increasing the effect of regenerative braking to recapture unused energy to be redeployed later. That makes it perfect for driving in city centres, suburbs and stop-start traffic.

On the motorway, a combination of the Skoda Enyaq iV’s Eco Mode and either cruise control or the speed limiter keeps you at a constant speed – taking the stress out of long-distance journeys and helping you drive in a more range-friendly way by avoiding the unnecessary hopping between the throttle and the brakes. 

At the other end of the scale, Sport mode delivers more mid-range all-electric torque for a more engaging experience on twisty A-roads. In all modes, you can control the levels of regenerative braking, choosing to put more energy back into the battery.

So, it’s easy to see how making the switch to an electric company car is simple. All it takes is a little know-how.

Learn more about the Skoda Enyaq iV.

^[1] Charging times will depend on various factors, including temperature, state of the battery, state of and capabilities of the charging unit and power supply. Actual charging time will vary depending on the level of charge in the battery, as well as environmental conditions. Charging times will also be affected by the charging curve for example once charging passes 80%, charging will slow to protect the battery’s longevity.

^[2] The availability of the maximum electrical output could be limited. The amount of power available in individual driving situations depends on various factors, such as ambient temperature and the charge status, temperature and condition or physical age of the high-voltage battery.