The risk of charging an EV at home
Charging an EV draws a huge, continuous electrical load for hours โ very different from running an air conditioner or a water heater. Heat build-up at a wiring joint, or an ageing Wallbox, can cause a short circuit that turns into a fire, especially when charging is left running overnight with nobody watching.
What does EV charger fire insurance cover?
Many people assume Class 1 motor insurance covers everything, but in reality motor insurance covers the car only. If a fire spreads to the house or to a neighbouring property, the motor policy will not pay for that.
EV Charger insurance (fire insurance for EV chargers) is designed to close this gap, covering three main areas:
- The Wallbox charger: damage to the unit itself (from explosion, fire or lightning) up to 30,000โ50,000 THB, enough for well-known chargers such as Tesla, BYD, ABB or Delta.
- The building: if the fire spreads from the charging point into the house, the carport or contents inside the home.
- Third-party liability: the most important part. If the fire spreads to a neighbour's house or a visitor's parked car, the policy pays compensation of up to 1โ3 million THB.
Underwriting conditions and installation standards
For the policy to pay in full, the EV charging point must be installed to the standard of the Metropolitan Electricity Authority (MEA) or the Provincial Electricity Authority (PEA):
- A correctly wired ground (earth) connection
- Cable and circuit-breaker sizing matched to the charger's rating (e.g. 7kW or 22kW)
- Installation by a qualified electrician or a certified company