As an operator of a holiday lettings site, you may have started listing holiday homes/rentals with EV Charging facilities onsite or you may have caught wind on more holiday home owners becoming increasingly concerned about choosing the right charging solution and have even asked you for your recommendation.

Side note: we've prepared a guide for holiday cottage owners here.

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Why is EV charging crucial for holiday lets?

A simple answer is: it gives holiday home owners increased booking rates for an exponentially increasing demographic who are also more affluent than the average holidaymaker.

Not only would a holiday home be able to increase its luxury appeal and cater to such a lucrative population, but a luxury holiday home would be remiss in not offering something befitting their luxury status!

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How can you add value to your portfolio?

You will likely have a list of preferred suppliers for things like bedding and linen, property maintenance, and food and perishable suppliers among many others.

If so, then having a working relationship with a charging solution provider can provide your owners with a value added service that increases their satisfaction and return rates. It also shows your commitment to sustainability and a growing need by an affluent demographic. Overall, your owners will thank you for it as it simplifies the hassle of choosing the right supplier.

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What you should look for

There are many aspects of a charging solution partner that make them a best fit for your portfolio. Here are a few key areas.

1. Industry experience

The ideal partner will likely have had experience with the hospitality industry, covering both independent holiday cottages and larger groups. This indicates that they are able to provide a complete and scalable solution for a wide range of clientele.

2. Unified platform and hardware

They would also have complete autonomy & know-how over the charging platform and hardware. This will ideally be in-house developed and not integrated with different suppliers.

In the event of a malfunction of the charging point or a bug in the platform, it is crucial to know who to direct their enquiries to. With third-party integrated solutions, that can be confusing. Make sure the charging solution provider is the direct line of support for holiday home owners or drivers.

3. Driver support

The ideal charging solution partner will also offer 24/7 driver support (and live up to its name!). The worst that can possibly happen is a guest who has travelled hundreds of miles only to find that they aren't able to get a charge. Even in this day and age, a personal touch with each guest is a valuable differentiator.

4. Monthly fees

You should be aware of charging solutions that require a monthly fee to use the platform. This can result in unnecessary costs for the owners in off-peak seasons. In addition to the monthly fees, the platform will also charge a transaction fee per session.

Based on our experience, the market rates for monthly fees (at around £8 per charging point) and transaction fees mean that the charging point needs to be used almost twice a day for it to be economically viable!

Based on our data on charging habits, most if not all holiday homes will not see that level of use.

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VoltShare: A Holistic Charging Solution for Holiday Homes

Not only do we talk the talk, but we walk the walk. With some of the biggest names of the hospitality and pub industry under our belt, we also work with independent B&Bs, holiday cottage owners, and leisure parks.

1. Integrated solution

Our solution is fully integrated with the latest in cloud technology and smart charging technology. What's more, we've developed these in-house and we make it a point not to use any third-party products in our offering. Ultimately, we are able to provide a seamless experience both for owners to collect payments and guests/drivers to pay and charge their cars with unparalleled ease.

2. PAYG - No monthly fees

Our long list of clients come to us for many reasons, one of which is the lack of any monthly fees to use our platform. Even in times of off-peak bookings, owners are not expected to pay any subscription fees. Drivers simply use our platform at no subscription costs as well.

We simply take a small % of each transaction. Holiday home owners have the ability to set a charging price that works for their venue and location.

3. Full monitoring & support package

We provide 24/7 driver and owner support. No matter what time of day (even on public holidays!), a member of the VoltShare team will be available to assist with any charging support. We will also completely monitor the charging points on a regular basis, this includes lifetime software updates and remote fault rectification.

We take care of the rest while holiday home owners focus on managing their day-to-day operations.

4. Flexible installation

We pride ourselves in being flexible in our approach. As such, we have a network of authorised installers who can perform a site survey and the installation of the charging points. Holiday home owners also have the option of using their own certified electrician or property management company to perform the install.

This ensures that they are getting the most cost-effective solution out there. In most cases, holiday home owners will not have a say and this can result in a somewhat inflated installation cost.

5. Personalised onboarding

As part of our client journey, we will provide a bespoke 1:1 onboarding session for owners to address issues such as

• Charging price
• Hardware questions
• Platform questions
• Feature requests

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Partner with us

As part of our growing network in luxury hotels, we have partnered with Off Peak Luxury to provide luxury hotels, manors, and spas with a scalable charging solution caters to the growing demand of affluent guests.

Our network within the holiday home industry is ever growing. We're looking to form meaningful partnerships with holiday lettings agencies to provide a complete and cost-effective charging solution for holiday home owners.

With customised co-branded design collaterals such as signages, we can not only increase your standing with existing owners but increase passive marketing traffic through signage placement. Give your owners the opportunity to join the leading hospitality charging network.

Get in touch with our partnerships team by booking a meeting below or calling us on 020 8168 8618.