UK EV charger growth slows to its weakest pace in years, exposing policy uncertainty, investor caution and growing regional inequality in the electric transition.
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| Despite rising electric car sales, the UK’s charger rollout has slowed sharply, highlighting fragile confidence in the pace of the EV transition. Image: CH |
London, United Kingdom — December 25, 2025:
The slowdown in the UK’s electric vehicle (EV) charger rollout in 2025 points to a deeper problem than missed installation targets: a growing lack of confidence in how fast — and how firmly — the country is committed to electrifying road transport.
Charger numbers are still rising, but at their weakest pace in years. By the end of November, the UK had 87,200 public chargers, up just 13,500 over the past year — the smallest annual increase since 2022. Growth is now on track to fall below 20%, down from 37% last year, marking the slowest expansion since installations began accelerating a decade ago.
This cooling comes even as electric car sales continue to rise. EVs accounted for 23% of new car sales in the first 11 months of 2025, up from 19% a year earlier. Yet that growth has fallen short of earlier expectations, unsettling investors who depend on clear, predictable demand to justify the high upfront costs of charging infrastructure.
Policy uncertainty sits at the centre of the problem. Carmakers have successfully pressed the government to weaken electric vehicle sales targets, a move designed to ease pressure on manufacturers but one that has rattled the charging industry. Infrastructure providers warn that diluted targets make future demand harder to forecast, undermining the business case for rapid expansion.
Mixed government messaging has compounded those concerns. While ministers continue to back electrification in principle, measures such as the planned 3p-per-mile road tax on electric cars from 2028 risk blurring the economic advantages of EV ownership. Even modest new costs can weigh heavily on consumer confidence at a stage when mass adoption is still fragile.
The impact is uneven across the charging network. Ultra-rapid chargers, which serve busy motorways and long-distance travel, are expanding quickly, with numbers up nearly 40% over the year. Slower chargers — essential for cheaper overnight charging and everyday use — have grown far more slowly. These installations are less profitable and more dependent on public funding, local authority coordination and timely grid connections.
Delays to the Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (Levi) fund and persistent bottlenecks in connecting chargers to the electricity grid have therefore hit less commercially attractive areas hardest. The result is widening regional inequality. London enjoys more than 300 public chargers per 100,000 people, while Northern Ireland has fewer than 40, reinforcing fears that EV adoption could become geographically skewed.
Some analysts argue the slowdown should not be overstated. Research suggests that public charging capacity across Great Britain remains ahead of demand, particularly on strategic road networks, where existing rapid chargers could meet needs for several years without further expansion. From this perspective, the pause reflects consolidation rather than retreat.
But that argument assumes confidence returns quickly. Charging infrastructure is capital-intensive and slow to scale. If investors interpret today’s policy signals as a lasting softening of ambition, today’s slowdown risks becoming tomorrow’s shortage — just as EV adoption eventually accelerates.
The UK’s EV transition, then, is not stalling because of a lack of technology or demand, but because of uncertainty. Clearer long-term targets, faster grid connections and reliable funding for local authorities could quickly restore momentum. Without them, the country risks drifting into a cycle where hesitation breeds delay — and delay undermines the very transition policymakers say they still support.