EV charger not working: common fixes (UK)

Video reference. The accompanying video is E.ON Next's "EV explainers: Common EV charging problems solved" from the E.ON Next YouTube channel. E.ON Next is one of the UK's major energy suppliers and their EV content covers the home charging problems most commonly reported by UK drivers. The video walks through the usual suspects before escalating to professional help.

1. Read the status indicator

The single most useful piece of information is the LED pattern on the charger when the fault appears. Manufacturers use different colour and flash schemes, but a broad pattern holds across most UK units: solid green or blue means ready to charge; a pulsing pattern during a session means charging is in progress; amber or orange usually signals a warning or a scheduled delay; red or rapid flashing red signals a fault that has stopped the session.

Some units display an error code on a small screen or send a push notification through the app. Note the exact LED behaviour or error code before doing anything else. It is the quickest route to the right fix, either via the manufacturer's support page or when speaking to an electrician.

2. Check the consumer unit

Walk to the consumer unit and look along the MCB row. Your EV charger should have its own dedicated MCB - typically a 32A or 40A breaker, often on a separate RCD or RCBO. If it is in the tripped position (handle between on and off, or fully off when all others are on), reset it once and go back to the charger.

If the MCB trips again immediately on reconnecting the car, do not keep resetting it. A breaker that trips repeatedly is protecting the circuit from something: a developing fault in the charger, a damaged cable, or an earth leakage that the unit's internal RCD should have caught. This needs a qualified electrician to test the circuit before you use it again.

3. Check the vehicle side

Pull the cable out of the car's charge port, wait 30 seconds, and re-insert it until you hear or feel the latch click. Inspect the charge port on the car for obvious debris, moisture or bent pins. A clogged or damp socket on the car can cause the EVSE to refuse to start a session.

On the car's infotainment system or app, check that charging is not paused, that any charge limit set is not already met, and that the battery is not so cold that the car has invoked preconditioning before accepting charge. Some vehicles - particularly in winter - will not accept full charge current until the battery pack has warmed slightly.

4. Power-cycle the charger

Switch the EV charger's MCB in the consumer unit to off. Wait a full 60 seconds for capacitors inside the unit to discharge and any fault latches to clear. Switch the MCB back on and give the unit two minutes to run through its start-up self-test - most units blink through a sequence of LED colours during this phase. Then reconnect the car.

A power-cycle clears a large proportion of the soft faults that smart chargers accumulate: stuck firmware states, failed communication handshakes with the vehicle, and OCPP connectivity errors if the unit connects to a network management server. If the unit works after a power-cycle but faults again within a few sessions, there is an underlying issue worth logging with the manufacturer.

5. Check the app and network connection

Smart chargers - including most Ohme, Zappi, Easee, Indra and Wallbox units - rely on a home network connection to enable scheduled charging and smart tariff features. Open the charger's companion app and check whether the unit appears online. An offline status means the charger cannot receive charge schedules and may fall back to a basic always-on mode, a delayed start, or no charge at all depending on how it is configured.

If the charger is showing as offline, check your router is working and that the charger's Wi-Fi or SIM signal indicator (if it has one) shows a connection. Rebooting your router can sometimes restore a dropped connection. Bear in mind that if you have recently changed your Wi-Fi password, the charger will need to be reconfigured with the new credentials through the app.

6. Inspect the cable and connector

For tethered chargers, run your hand along the charge cable from the unit to the Type 2 connector, feeling for any sharp kinks, cuts through the outer sheath, or crushing damage. Pay particular attention to the points where the cable exits the charger housing and where it meets the connector: these strain relief points take the most wear. Damage here can cause intermittent faults that only show up when the cable flexes under load.

Look at the Type 2 connector pins themselves. Bent, corroded or heat-discoloured pins indicate a connection problem that has been arcing. A connector in this state needs replacing by a qualified electrician - do not attempt to straighten bent pins yourself. For untethered chargers, try a different Mode 3 cable if one is available.

7. Contact the manufacturer or an electrician

If none of the above steps resolve the fault, gather the information the manufacturer will need: the exact error code or LED pattern, when the fault first appeared, whether anything changed beforehand (a power cut, a change in your tariff, a firmware update notification), and what you have already tried. Most major EV charger brands operating in the UK have a dedicated support line and can often resolve software or network faults remotely or provide a replacement unit under warranty.

For anything involving the supply wiring - the circuit that feeds the charger from the consumer unit - or for a PEN fault protection device that has activated (usually a separate unit near the consumer unit on older properties), call a qualified electrician. These faults cannot be assessed safely without test equipment.

When to call us

Richard installs and services home EV chargers across east Kent, covering Sandwich, Deal, Dover, Folkestone and the surrounding area. If a charger is tripping the supply, the supply wiring needs testing, or you want the unit inspected after a fault, he can attend and test the full circuit. Most EV charger fault calls in east Kent are resolved in a single visit.