Best Simplified guide to Eichrecht conformity
Here is the Best Simplified guide to Eichrecht conformity
Accustomed to service stations with a transparent and understandable display of the amount of fuel pumped, the price per liter, and the total consumption during each refueling process, it goes without saying that a normal EV driver expects the same level of transparency when it comes to charging of electric vehicles too.
Existing charging station hardware, software systems, and controls were not prepared for such detailed and transparent billing by the charging process. Thanks to Germany, which was responsible for promoting transparency by issuing the Calibration Law and the Eichrecht Measurement Law as an amendment to the Measurement and Verification Law (MessEG) and the Measurement and Calibration Verification (MessEV).
Best Simplified guide to Eichrecht conformity
A glance at Eichrecht.
- The Eichrecht law only considers KWh consumption billing fair: therefore, purely time-based fees (billing per minute) and flat-rate session fees per charging process (billing per chase) are not allowed.
- Fully regulated calibration and end-to-end data security of charging data: This means that the charging stations have fully calibrated KWh metering devices and must guarantee the user a reliable and trustworthy transaction in accordance with the requirements of German law.
How does Eichrecht work? : Best Simplified guide to Eichrecht conformity
The Eichrecht calibration law prescribes that the KWh meter used for billing must be calibrated periodically and be visible to the customer (Electric Vehicle driver).
The customer must be able to verify the KWh value at the station himself (via a screen or position the meter so that it is visible to the customer). In addition, the charging station will also have a unique public key (possibly QR code) with which the customer can verify the “start counter value” via a separate web/app /IT interface (eg transparency software SAFE Initiative), which corresponds to the legislation of the calibration law. In this way, the driver of an electric vehicle can reliably check how much electricity one has consumed, at what time, and at what price.
After completing the charging process, the station generates charging data for the respective customer, signed and encrypted, in the IT backend of the charging point operator (CPO). The eMobility Provider (EMP) creates an invoice for the customer based on this signed and secure data.
What does Eichert mean for charging at home?
Some scenarios:
- Charging at personal charging station connected to home meter:
If you charge your own electric vehicle through your personal wall box, which is connected to your own home meter, you don’t need a charging station that complies with the calibration law. The station does not even need a certified MID (Measuring Instruments Directive) meter. In this case, the charging station for electric vehicles is considered any other household appliance (such as a fan, oven, heater, etc.).
- Company car charging at personal charging station connected to home meter:
If you charge your rented electric vehicle from your home’s wall box, it is enough to buy a charging station with a MID certified meter to reimburse the allowances with the employer.
However, if more than one electric car is charged in its wall box (also occasionally), p. Eg if you and your partner work for two different companies and pay separately, or if your relatives or acquaintances also charge from this charging station it is not correct legally to use MID meter equipped charging station for reimbursements.
The exact requirements for this special application are still a bit unclear, as there is still no clear guidance from the AGME Working Group on Measurement and Calibration. Until there is a clear official statement, everything may depend on what tests the employer may request to prove the charge consumption of the electric vehicle. Therefore, always check your employer’s conditions for reimbursement. Best Simplified guide to Eichrecht conformity.
What does Eichrecht mean by charging at the workplace/ company? : Best Simplified guide to Eichrecht conformity
- Employee charging at company location:
If an employer makes a free charging infrastructure available to its employees, the charging stations in the office do not have to comply with the calibration law. The situation is different if the employee has to pay to charge his electric vehicle in an office parking lot. Next, the employer must install charging stations that meet the requirements of the calibration law.
- Visitors charging their electric vehicles at company location:
If an external customer or visitor charges at the office location, these charging stations must comply with the calibration law. In this case, these stations are considered “public” stations, i.e. all requirements for a public train station must also be met, and price information regulations must also be observed.
- Pool electric vehicles at company location:
Group vehicles are mostly free to charge as they are not tied to any user and refunds are difficult to bill/process. However, when a user is assigned and must be billed, the rules are completely internal until the company’s tax filing system decides what kind of evidence to show to the tax authorities.
When did Eichrecht come into effect?
The law of calibration is not new; The modification of the measurement and calibration law came into force on 01/01/2015. However, as of early last year (2019), only three charging station hardware manufacturers were approved for compliance with the calibration law.
Since we now have a lot of hardware for charging stations, we have the legal approval of PTB / VDE; and many CPO platforms have implemented the necessary IT architecture, this year 2020 will be a year in which Eichrecht stations will be installed and operated throughout Germany.
Is the implementation of the Eichrecht complex?
Yes, although the technologies involved (such as KWh meter calibration, public key infrastructure (PKI) are already in use in telecommunications, banking and other industries, the implementation of the calibration law for electric vehicle charging It was not easy. and the data value transmission chain had to be redesigned, which required a big change in the entire eMobility ecosystem, starting with the use of the charging station hardware for the eMobility provider back to communication and billing from the office, and there were also many ambiguities in the legislation and approval processes. Best Simplified guide to Eichrecht conformity.
How is conformity of Eichrecht regulated?
The Measurement and Verification Ordinance (MessEV) defines the guidelines and requirements in accordance with the calibration law and authorizes the German Federal Institute for Metrology (PTB) to carry out type testing and pattern approval. Consequently, the PTB commissions 16 local control measurement points in each federal state for market surveillance with local control points.
Trackbacks/Pingbacks