EV charge points: freeholders could have to answer leaseholders' requests within a set time

What happened

On 21 October 2026 the Department for Transport opened a consultation on an “ability to charge” for tenants and leaseholders in England who have off-street parking. It closes at 11:59pm on 16 December 2026.

The department says leaseholders and tenants often struggle to get their landlord’s or freeholder’s permission for a charge point, sometimes with no clear reason given, even when they would pay for it themselves.

It puts forward two options:

1. Guidance only: non-statutory guidance for leaseholders, tenants and freeholders on how to make and handle requests. Freeholders would not have to agree, but would be encouraged to explain a refusal.
2. Legislation: a legal requirement on freeholders and landlords to give a timely decision and not to refuse a request unreasonably. As an example, the document suggests an acknowledgement, then a written decision within a period such as 28 calendar days, with reasons for any refusal.

What it means for your building

In a block owned by its leaseholders, or run by a right to manage or residents’ management company, the “freeholder or landlord” that gets the request may be your own company. Under the legislation option, the board would need a process to log requests, take advice, and reply in writing within the time set.

The consultation covers three kinds of parking: spaces demised to the leaseholder, spaces owned by the freeholder but allocated to a flat, and communal parking. It expects the leaseholder to pay the up-front cost, and asks whether freeholders would want a formal licence for alterations and conditions on the works.

Possible reasons for a reasonable refusal listed in the consultation include:

• the request would breach the lease or another legal duty;
• the local electricity network would need upgrading;
• there is no off-street parking for the resident, or not enough space;
• the installation would not meet BS 7671, the wiring standard;
• in a block of flats, the freeholder is adopting a building-wide charging approach.

That last reason matters for boards: a block with a plan for shared charging may be in a stronger position than one dealing with requests one at a time.

Grants of up to £500 already exist for people living in flats, and for residential landlords, towards a charge point.

What to do now

• Read the consultation and respond by 16 December, as a company and as individuals. It asks freeholder organisations and leaseholders for their views separately.
• Check what your leases say about alterations and parking, and how the board currently handles requests.
• Consider asking an electrician for a view on the building’s supply capacity before requests arrive.
• If residents want charging, discuss at a board meeting whether a building-wide approach would suit the block.

This is general information, not legal advice. Your leases decide what consent is needed today.

How Freeholdpilot helps

Freeholdpilot keeps the leases and electrical reports in the document store, and records board votes and decisions, so the company can show how and when it dealt with each request.