AFP rounds up Government announcements on EVs and PHEVs

AFTER a flurry of announcements from the government on a number of salient points for fleets, the Association of Fleet Professionals (AFP) has rounded up the key items.

These included a consultation to ease the BiK burden of changes to PHEV emission standards.

Depot Charging Scheme

The Office for Zero Emission Vehicles (OZEV) has introduced the Depot Charging Scheme, allocating £30 million to support the uptake of zero emission HGVs, vans, and coaches by part-funding the installation of charging infrastructure at fleet depots.

The scheme covers 75% of chargepoint and civil costs incurred, up to a maximum of £1 million per organisation.

Find out more and apply for funding here – Depot Charging Scheme – GOV-UK Find a grant. The application window will close on 28 November 2025 or when funding has been exhausted (whichever is sooner), and works must be completed by 31 March 2026.

Electric Car Grant

The government announced a new £650m Electric Car Grant which gives buyers up to £3,750 off eligible new electric cars priced under £37,000.

The grant started on 16 July 2025 and will run until 2029, although the closure date will remain under review and could close earlier if funds are exhausted.

The Electric Car Grant has 2 bands. £3,750 for the most sustainably produced cars and £1,500 for cars that meet some environmental criteria. This is in recognition of the need to address embedded carbon emissions across a vehicle’s lifetime, as well as tailpipe emissions. Vehicles that do not meet minimum sustainability standards will not qualify for a grant.

Grants are available now, subject to confirmation of vehicle eligibility by the Department for Transport. A list of eligible vehicles will be updated on the department website as vehicles are approved. A full list of eligible vehicles is expected from mid-August.

More information can be found here – Electric Car Grant launched – GOV.UK

Roadside charging

£25m has been earmarked for local authorities to install cross-pavement technology that enables cables to run safely beneath pavements and allow roadside charging from a domestic energy source. This enables people without driveways to charge their vehicles at home.

Euro 6e-bis emission standard - BiK easement for PHEVs

A consultation will be launched on proposals to mandate the Euro 6e-bis emission standard in Great Britain, which would apply to all new car and van registrations from April 2026 – in line with Northern Ireland and the rest of the EU.

The Government has announced plans to legislate for an easement that will apply UK-wide between April 2026 and April 2028 to help mitigate the benefit-in-kind impact that the new standard will have on PHEVs. This would be back dated for Northern Ireland where the Euro 6e-bis emission standard has applied since January 2025. See the written statement to Parliament here.

Electric NHS

To ensure the savings the EV transition can bring are felt in the public sector too, the NHS in England is also receiving an £8 million fund to power the electrification of ambulances and medical fleets across over 200 NHS sites.
Read more here – NHS Chargepoint Accelerator Scheme funding – GOV.UK

EV charging signage

EV charging signage on major roads will be modernised. Immediate changes will allow EV charging hubs – which have more than doubled since the beginning of 2023 and now stand at over 82,000 charging points – to be signposted from motorways and major A-roads for the first time.

Changes to Employee Car Ownership Schemes (ECOS)

As announced at the Autumn Budget 2024, the government is amending the benefit-in-kind rules so that vehicles provided through ECOS arrangements will be deemed as taxable benefits when made available on restricted terms, outlined in the legislation. This will come into effect on 6 October 2026.

You can read more and view the draft legislation here – Changes to Employee Car Ownership Schemes (ECOS) – GOV.UK