Chargie rebrands as Bookmycharge
The peer-to-peer electric vehicle (EV) charging service Chargie has relaunched under the rebranded name, Bookmycharge.
The start-up has changed its name after it became aware of a similarly named company which supplies councils with EV chargepoints for installation onto lamp posts.
The new brand better reflects the service’s core appeal, which is the ability to book a charge rather than risking out-of-service or occupied public charging points. The new name also brings the brand closer to the destination-based usage pattern that the founders believe will be a key feature of the service’s appeal going forward.
Bookmycharge will enable EV owners to gain access to the vast network of private chargepoints already installed at homes and businesses, like B&Bs, across the UK. As the Bookmycharge network expands, it will make EVs a viable proposition for greater numbers of motorists, including those travelling longer distances and to destinations in areas with no public chargepoints.
The way Bookmycharge works is simple: the EV owner wanting to charge their car finds a domestic or destination exterior-wall-mounted chargepoint on the Bookmycharge website and sends a booking request to the owner. The owner can then review the profile of the person making the booking before accepting or declining it. Once the booking is accepted, the user pays via Bookmycharge and the system contacts both parties to confirm details.
A charge typically costs the chargepoint owner around £2 to £4.
The founders of Bookmycharge are a couple from Maidenhead, Jan Stannard and husband Jeremy Coulter.
Jan said, ‘Though we didn’t expect to have to change our name, we can now see the advantage of doing so: Bookmycharge gives us the opportunity to go forward with a brand that does what it says on the tin. The timing also works, ahead of an investment round.
‘We have seen steady growth in the number of registered chargepoints on the service since the May launch, and have received requests from several countries asking about expansion into their territories.’
Chargepoints can be registered at no cost now on the Bookmycharge website www.bookmycharge.com
