Mer Partners With Zap-Map To Make EV Payment Easier

This latest roaming deal from Mer means Zap-Map customers using the company’s popular Zap-Pay service to pay for their charging can now access Mer’s range of next-generation chargers.

Mer, which launched earlier this year, is focused on installing EV infrastructure into high-usage, high-footfall locations like workplaces, public places, car parks and residential areas where people don’t have access to their own garages or driveways.

The company currently operates close to 200 chargers across the UK, with a mix of rapid, ultra-rapid and fast chargers.

Zap-Pay, the simple way to pay for EV charging across networks from within the Zap-Map app, was launched last year with a mission to include all the key charge point networks across the UK. As a single-app payment system that uses a credit or debit card to pay for charging, Zap-Pay avoids the hassle of using different payment methods across all the various networks.

With Mer now signed up, Zap-Map’s 160,000 monthly active users will benefit from being able to search, plan and pay from within a single app across seven different charge point operators across the UK, with more networks to be added soon. The Zap-Pay agreement is the latest in a string of roaming programs that Mer has agreed so far this year.

Mer, which is backed by Europe’s biggest generator of renewable energy – Norwegian energy giant Statkraft – firmly believes making charging as easy to use as possible is critical to increasing EV adoption.

Key to making things easy is interoperability, with charging point operators (CPOs) offering a more seamless experience for users by joining together in roaming agreements. In essence, what this means is that EV drivers should be able to access, charge and pay for recharging their vehicle at any charging point – without having to have specific subscriptions, payment plans or access fees.

With tens of thousands of new charging points needed ahead of the UK Government’s ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel powered cars and vans in 2030, ensuring motorists can charge their vehicles easily at any of these, when they need to, will be crucial in supporting widespread EV ownership.

As a single-app payment system that uses a credit or debit card to pay for charging, Zap-Pay promotes interoperability by reducing the hassle for customers of using different payment methods across all the various networks.

Commenting, Mer UK Managing Director, Anthony Hinde, said: “The switch to electric vehicles offers tremendous benefits to both individuals and society, not only in terms of helping reduce climate change but from a cost perspective too.

“Yet collectively, as an industry, we need to do more to make charging these vehicles as easy and painless as possible, so we help encourage widespread adoption.”

“Interoperability is absolutely fundamental to this, ensuring charging EV batteries is as straightforward and accessible as filling a vehicle with fossil fuel.” – Anthony Hinde, Mer UK Managing Director

Alex Earl, Commercial Director at Zap-Map, commented: “We’re delighted that Mer has agreed to join the Zap-Pay partner network.

“It’s great to see Zap-Pay gathering such momentum over recent months, not least because the EV community is crying out for simple solutions to what is currently a complex puzzle.”

“As electric vehicles become mainstream, we need to make paying for charging as simple as possible, and that’s exactly what Zap-Pay does. As a single-app payment solution, it avoids the hassle of using different payment methods across all the various networks.” – Alex Earl, Commercial Director at Zap-Map