Ecotricity says 40,000 cardholders will need to download a new mobile app designed to make payments. The same app provides a "live feed' of the Electric Highway, directing EV owners to their nearest pump. Because the company has to manually update the hundreds of charging points, it expects to complete the switch by August 5th, which may mean that some chargers offer free charging for longer than others.

With Tesla set to charge customers extra for access to its Supercharger network when the affordable Model 3 launches, Ecotricity is moving early to ensure its charging points aren't misused. The two companies have a troubled history, of course, after it was revealed that Tesla and Ecotricity were once due to become partners on a UK-wide charging network but things went sour and it ultimately ended up with them settling their differences in court.

When the company begun installing points five years ago, it knew that in order to incentivise Britons to switch to an electric vehicle, it would need to build an infrastructure that could serve them. Now EVs are a viable choice, you could say its work is done. Ecotricity says the money generated from the chargers will enable it to invest in more charging points and better service the ones it has already installed.