Property developers should make sure they consider electric vehicle (EV) charging points on their sites, as well as all the other utility connections, as more people are driving environmentally friendly cars these days. 

Although it might not have been on their plans when they first bought the land, developers need to keep up with the times by installing EV chargers so that anyone who lives or works in the development when it is complete is able to keep their car battery full. 

This is becoming even more important, as the number of EV owners continues to grow. 

According to the Society of Motor Manufacturers & Traders (SMMT), the number of new hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) registrations in March 2024 was 19.6 per cent higher than the year before. At the same time, diesel registrations dropped by 2.7 per cent over the same period. 

Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV) are also becoming more popular, with the number of new registrations soaring by 36.7 per cent from March 2023 to March 2024.

While petrol cars continue to dominate the market share at 55.7 per cent, collectively, HEVs, PHEVs and battery electric vehicles (BEVs) account for 36.7 per cent, which is not too far behind. 

Mike Hawes, chief executive of SMMT, called for the government to do more to help private car buyers get into the EV market by providing financial incentives. 

If this happens, the demand for EV chargers is set to surge. 

According to government figures, there were 53,677 public EV charging devices in the UK. 

However, around 110,000 BEVs, PHEVs and HEVs were sold in March 2024 alone, demonstrating the need for more EV charging points in private spaces too.