EV Home Charging Study finds owner satisfaction down

When J.D. Power quantified EV owner satisfaction with the public charging experience at Level 2 and DC fast chargers, it found owners unhappy about "finding the charging infrastructure inadequate and plagued with non-functioning stations." So while there are more stations than ever, charging hurdles have made EV buyers less happy. It's a similar story with the latest study, the 2023 U.S. Electric Vehicle Experience (EVX) Home Charging Study. More homes have been fitted with Level 2 permanently mounted charging stations and more BEV and PHEV buyers own Level 2 portable stations. Despite the increased convenience, the study found owners less satisfied overall with the charging experience, the overall happiness with permanent home stations dropping from a score of 752 to 740 out of 1,000.

The study queries owners on eight facets of the home charging experience for BEVs and PHEVs using Level 1 (household plug) and fixed and portable Level 2 chargers: Fairness of the charger's retail price; cord length; size of charger; ease of winding/storing cable; cost of charging; charging speed; ease of use; and reliability.

Scores for overall satisfaction with Level 2 charging dropped in all nine national regions. Respondents cited cost as part of the problem, public utility kWh rates climbing with the prices of everything else. Another problem comes from charging speeds that apparently haven't fulfilled expectations.