What is managed charging?
Managed charging controls when electric vehicles charge and how much power they draw, using schedules or changing signals. For your site, it can coordinate vehicle needs with available power, prices or solar [S1]. Great Britain's smart charge point rules took effect on 30 June 2022, with exclusions including public and rapid chargers [S2]. Checked October 2026.
What does managed charging mean for your site?
Managed charging adjusts the timing or power of electric vehicle charging instead of letting every plugged-in vehicle draw its available maximum immediately. It can respond to electricity-system conditions and the driver’s required charge [S1].
Why it matters for your site: specify when vehicles must be ready alongside your electrical limit. A low-price window is useful only if the charging plan also meets your operational needs. Read smart charging and off-peak tariffs for the wider pricing context.
Is managed charging different from load balancing?
Load balancing shares available power between chargers. A dynamic system changes that allocation as other site loads change [S3]. Managed charging is a broader description that can also cover scheduling. Terminology varies: the IET notes that load management has several overlapping names [S4]. Specify functions rather than relying on the label.
For an illustration, assume a site permits 40 kilowatts (kW, a measure of power) of demand and other equipment currently draws 28 kW. Charging headroom is 40 − 28 = 12 kW. If that headroom lasted 2 hours, it would allow 12 × 2 = 24 kilowatt-hours (kWh, a measure of energy) before charging losses. These are assumptions, not a site design. Dynamic load management covers the measurement and control questions.
Does managed charging send electricity back from vehicles?
It need not. Controlling one-way charging differs from vehicle-to-grid (V2G), which sends stored energy back to the electricity system [S1]. Ask separately about solar-responsive scheduling and bidirectional equipment.
Great Britain’s private workplace smart charge point rules require adjustable default charging hours; public and rapid charge points are excluded from this particular regime [S2]. Compliance alone does not specify your fleet’s departure priorities or prove that your chosen site-control arrangement is suitable.
Next step
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Common questions
Does a smart charge point need an app to be managed?
The rules require smart functionality and a user interface, rather than prescribing a particular app. Ask how schedules and settings can be changed on the proposed equipment [S2].
Can you change the default charging hours?
Yes. In-scope charge points must let the owner accept, remove or change their preset off-peak hours on first use and afterwards [S2].
What does static load management do?
It shares a fixed allocation of available power across charge points. Confirm that allocation against your site's other electrical demand [S3].
Can your system prioritise vehicles?
Dynamic systems can offer start, stop and priority controls. Specify departure needs and test that the selected system actually delivers those functions [S3].
Will charging stop if communications fail?
In-scope smart charge points must support continued charging without a communications network. Ask the designer how the site's capacity limits will still be respected during that condition [S2].
Ask about your site
Sources
- Electric vehicles, National Energy System Operator,Last checked 19 October 2026
- Regulations: electric vehicle smart charge points, Office for Product Safety and Standards,Last checked 19 October 2026
- Load management, Energy Saving Trust,Last checked 19 October 2026
- Guide to electric vehicle charging infrastructure for local authorities, Institution of Engineering and Technology,Last checked 19 October 2026