Volvo will offer a year’s supply of free charging with any of its new plug-in hybrid models from now until 30 June 2020 in the UK. The year’s supply of free electricity will be available with any of its new plug-in hybrid vehicles purchased between now and 30 June 2020. The Swedish company is hoping the plan will reduce the emissions of its PHEV range by encouraging drivers to switch to the electric option of their model’s drivetrain.

The offer will be automatically available to both private and business customers with the vehicle’s electricity usage stored on the driver’s smartphone through the Volvo On Call app. The costs of at-home charging will be calculated from May 2020 and refunded to the driver the following year, based on the average electricity cost.

Recently, businesses have begun using PHEV cars as fleet vehicles, thanks to government incentives like grants and tax reductions. Yet, research conducted by TMC, a fuel management company, has shown that drivers are not charging their plug-in hybrid vehicles correctly and often use only petrol power since it’s easier to claim the cost of fuel back from their companies.

In 2018, TMC collected data on roughly 1,500 plug-in hybrid vehicles. The company’s records revealed average real-world economy figures of 39.3mpg, which is more than 100mpg less than Volvo’s stated WLTP figures for the XC40 T5 plug-in hybrid SUV.

Volvo would like its latest incentive to convince drivers to keep the batteries of their PHEVs charged. The brand’s UK Managing Director, Kristian Elvefors, said, “At Volvo, in keeping with our Swedish roots, we’ve always taken a keen interest in looking after the environment. Our recently stated ambition to become a carbon-neutral company by 2040 shows we are serious about addressing climate change.”

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“It’s crucial that we help our plug-in hybrid customers understand how they can make the most of their car’s electric potential. So, by meeting their electricity charging costs for a year, we can encourage them to develop the good habit of regularly recharging their car’s battery, as well as saving them money at the same time,” he added.