Roam Charging is paying UK businesses up to £1,000 (about $1,325) for each qualifying EV charger they replace with its fully managed, OCPP-compliant hardware. The program, which Roam calls New Lease of Life, targets workplaces, hotels, residential developments and other destinations operating aging, faulty, non-compliant or unmanaged charging equipment. According to the company, replacement equipment and standard installation are provided at no cost to sites that sign a long-term lease or other site agreement with Roam.
Highlights
- £500 (about $660) per single-socket charger and £1,000 (about $1,325) per dual-socket charger replaced
- No-cost hardware and installation for sites entering a long-term lease or other site agreement
- OCPP-compliant replacements with Roam handling monitoring, maintenance and support
- All removed hardware recycled as waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE)
How Does the Roam Charger Replacement Offer Work?
Roam will remove qualifying chargers in communal parking bays and install its own units in their place. The swap runs through Roam’s fully funded charging model, under which the company covers installation and maintenance while the host business provides the space and access for the chargers.
Payments are set per charger:
- Single-socket charger: £500 (about $660)
- Dual-socket charger: £1,000 (about $1,325)
Beyond the one-time payment, the company says participating sites also have an opportunity to earn ongoing revenue over the life of the partnership. Roam states that eligibility and the payment amount are confirmed after a site assessment, and it has posted the full program terms and conditions online.
Which Sites Is Roam Targeting?
The company points to workplaces where older chargers may have been installed to satisfy local planning (zoning) requirements, along with hotels, residential developments and other destinations running aging or unmanaged equipment. Roam argues that infrastructure installed several years ago can become more expensive and difficult to manage, and that changes in technology and regulation can leave older systems unsuitable for long-term use.
Why OCPP Compliance Is Central to the Offer
Open Charge Point Protocol (OCPP) enables communication between charging hardware and different back-office management platforms. Roam says its OCPP-compliant replacements help site owners avoid being tied to aging or unsupported hardware.
The new chargers come with a fully managed service covering monitoring, maintenance and support. According to the company, that shifts the management burden away from property, facilities and operations teams, particularly for organizations with chargers spread across several locations.
What Happens to the Old Chargers?
All hardware Roam removes will be collected for recycling as WEEE, the category covered by the UK’s Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations 2013. The company says the process recovers materials and reduces the amount of electrical waste sent to landfill.
Roam CEO on the Replacement Program
James Randall, CEO of Roam, framed the payment as a way to remove the cost barrier to upgrading.
“EV charging has evolved rapidly and there are now businesses, developments and destinations across the UK with infrastructure that is non-compliant, ageing or simply no longer delivering the experience users and operators need.
“Replacing charging equipment can understandably feel like a significant investment, particularly when the original infrastructure may have only been installed a few years ago. We wanted to remove that barrier.
“By paying organisations to replace qualifying chargers and taking responsibility for the ongoing management, maintenance and support of the new infrastructure, we can help customers move away from ageing equipment while providing a much more reliable charging experience.”
Randall added that the program is meant to push site owners to act before older equipment becomes a larger operational issue.
“Businesses and property operators need infrastructure they can rely on today, but also technology that gives them flexibility for the future.
“This initiative is our way of helping organisations make that transition now rather than waiting until ageing equipment becomes a bigger operational problem.”
