https://aeva.asn.au/aeva-conference-2025-campbell/
AEVA Conference 2025 Campbell
Peter Campbell. The status of EV charging in multi-unit developments
Abstract
As the EV transition progresses into the mainstream, it is becoming increasingly common to learn of EV owners being prohibited from charging (or, in some cases, parking) their EVs in their parking garage. This is despite some states and territories now having provisions in their strata acts to make it easier to install ‘sustainability infrastructure’. Some restrictions can be reasonable to ensure equitable access to charging by all residents in due course and to minimise the need for expensive upgrades to electricity supplies.
In this paper, the influence of the Australian and New Zealand Council for Fire and Emergency Services (AFAC) position paper on EV charging will be discussed. The draft 2025 National Construction Code (NCC), delayed indefinitely, introduces some new fire protection requirements for parking garages, but these are not specifically due to EVs. These are welcome and sensible changes, but they are very unlikely to be applied retrospectively. While future buildings built according to NCC 2025 may have some changes to EV charging and fire protection relative to the current 2022 NCC, existing buildings do not have clear mandatory requirements. Present indications are that insurers are not very concerned about EVs or EV charging.
About the speaker
Peter Campbell has had many years on the executive committee of a strata development, sometimes as chair or treasurer, and is a long-standing member of the ACT branch of AEVA. He has been driving electric since 2009, first with a home-conversion and most recently a 2023 Hyundai Ioniq 5.