Zap-Map reveals new single-app payment as Zap-Pay

UK electric vehicle mapping service Zap-Map has unveiled Zap-Pay, a new service that enables EV drivers to use a single app to pay for charging across different networks. Engenie will be the first charging network to join Zap-Pay.

++ This article has been updated. Please continue reading below. ++

As the UK’s electric vehicle segment keeps growing and charging services and infrastructure are increasing rapidly in the British Isles, coherence and easy access play an important factor in maintaining electrification user-friendly. This was also noted by Rachel Maclean, UK Government Transport Minister, who said: “It should be as easy for drivers to charge their vehicles at public charge points as it is to pay for petrol or diesel. This is why I have made services, such as the one launched today, a personal priority as we transition to zero-emission vehicles.”

Zap-Map already specialises in finding EV charging stations, making it a logical addition for the app to offer payment services to more than 100k users instead of requiring them to switch to whatever system the local charging provider uses. Engenie is to be only the first charging network to join the app combiner. In their press release, the company promises, “It will be followed by a wave of network partners, including ESB EV Solutions, LiFe and Hubsta, in the autumn, all using a simple pay-as-you-go (PAYG) tariff.” Zap-Pay will be rolled out across other UK networks in late 2020 and 2021.

Zap-Pay is live on ten Engenie charging points across four locations – Stratford, Gloucester, Chepstow, and Bristol. The plan is to include the rest of Engenie’s 150+ charging station network by the end of September.

Update 07 September 2021

Five more electric vehicle charging networks have joined Zap-Map’s payment system, Zap-Pay, in the UK. GeniePoint, Char.gy, Motor Fuel Group (MFG), Revive and Mer have signed up for the service, joining ESB Energy and Osprey.

Zap-Map says that once all seven networks are live – likely by October this year – over 2,000 charging devices across the UK and over 4,000 connectors will be Zap-Pay enabled. It also means that the Zap-Pay partner network now includes all types of EV charging, from ultra-rapid chargers to on-street and lamp-post AC charging closer to home.

Alex Earl, Commercial Director at Zap-Map, said the new single-app payment solution avoids the hassle of using different payment methods across various networks. He added that the EV community was “crying out for simple solutions to what is currently a complex puzzle.”

Update 03 August 2022

While it took longer than envisioned, Zap-Map has completed integrating two more charging networks into its payment service Zap-Pay. Currently, 120 Mer charge points offer Zap-Pay, with the company building the roll-out to eventually include all 3,000 charge points in the network over the coming weeks, according to Zap-Pay.

The same goes for the on-street charging network char.gy that is now also live on the service across its entire network of EV chargers.

Both companies joined Zap-Map in September last year. It is unclear why the roll-out has only started now.

Statkraft-owned Mer and char.gy join live Zap-Pay partners Osprey, ESB Energy, and GeniePoint in the UK.

Additional reporting by Nora Manthey, UK.

zap-map.com, zap-map.com (update September ’21), zap-map.com (Mer now live), zap-map.com (char.gy now live)