Advice

How much does it cost to charge an electric car at a public charging station in Australia? The entirely wonderful news is that the answer starts at a very reasonable “nothing” because there are some free charging stations out there.Much like service stations, with their highly combustible and holiday-dependent fuel prices, however, how much it costs to charge your EV at a public charging station will vary based on the supplier, the cost they are charging per kilowatt and the size of your car’s battery.If we base our answer on the average EV battery capacity of 60kWh and the mid-range charger price of around 40c/kWh, the average price to charge an EV would be $24, while the maximum price could be pushing $50.Keep in mind, of course, that that’s the cost for filling an entire battery from empty to 100 per cent, which you will never do, because running your EV completely flat is not great for your car, and even worse for you, because you’ll be stranded, and you can’t put a hose onto a nearby car and suck out volts with your mouth.Of course, once we take into account the widely different size of EV batteries - from a Fiat 500e with a 42kWh battery to a Porsche Taycan with 105kWh - and the speed and power of public chargers, which vary from 7.0kW to 350kW plus the pricing of public chargers, which range from that lovely free number to as much as 85c per kWh, you can see that calculating an accurate average is a task akin to juggling chainsaws on ketamine. Albeit slightly less dangerous.The other new wrinkle that EVs throw up that makes the price of charging them so different to filling a car with fuel is that the faster you’re filling up, the more it costs.Much like the “convenience” stores attached to service stations, and main streets everywhere, you’re paying for the convenience here, and this is a case where time really is money.What you probably really want to know, up front, is whether charging an EV at a public charging station is cheaper or more expensive than filling up a car with fuel at a petrol station.Considering the very cheapest price you can charge your electric car for is “free”, the answer is yes. Even if you use the most expensive ultra fast 350kW DC chargers, the price is still going to be around 20 per cent cheaper than filling a comparable vehicle with petrol, according to the EV Council.The other thing you’re probably very keen to hear is where can I find one of these free public charging stations? The good news is they do exist, the bad news is that they are all Tesla ones - or Tesla Destination Chargers, to be exact, which charge at a relatively modest 22kW but are free for Tesla owners (and sometimes for other EVs as well, it’s worth plugging into one to check).As of February 2024, there were 668 Tesla Destination Chargers around Australia, and more than 40,000 worldwide.Then we have the independent company JOLT’s free 7.0kWh of DC charging every day (15-20 minutes of charging, or roughly 50km of range) and the limited power (12-14kWh) free (albeit limited) charging stations found in council areas in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. We can expect, or hope, to see more of these in the future.Until recently, the NRMA was also offering free fast DC charging at more than 100 locations, but it brought in a charge for those in September, 2023.The NRMA is rolling its Fast (up to 150kW) and Ultra-Fast chargers on highways around the country and it is currently charging 54 cents per kilowatt hour for the Fast ones or 59 cents per kWh for the Ultra Fast, which offer 175kW charging.So, let’s use a Tesla Model 3 Long Range/Tesla Model Y as our standard size of battery from this point on, as they share a 75kWh battery and are two of the most popular EVs on our roads.For our typical Tesla, then, charging from 30 per cent full to 100 per cent would cost around $30 at an NRMA charger.Being a Tesla owner, of course, you could also avail yourself of the Tesla network of Superchargers, which offer between 100 and 120kW charging, and cost between 64 and 81c per kWh, depending on variables including membership fees, and whether you’re charging a Tesla or a non-Tesla.So again, that’s between $33 and $43 to go from 30 per cent to 100 per cent on a Tesla Model 3 Long Range or Tesla Model Y battery.Other providers of fast charging of between 100 and 120kW include Chargefox (45c to 60c per kWh), AmpCharge (at some Ampol service stations, between 60 and 69c) and Exploren (prices change by location).There are also DC chargers offering 25 to 50kW, 75kW, 150kW, 200 to 250kW and 'Ultra Rapid' charges at more than 350kW and prices range widely, from 15c per kWh to 85c.It’s important to remember that most people - more than 80 per cent, according to research - will do most of their EV charging at home, and another 80 per cent of EV purchasers have solar panels on their house, meaning they can, in theory, charge their vehicles for free.But there are more than 3700 public EV charging stations in Australia, and 100 per cent of EV owners will, at some point, have to use a public charging station.This inevitability leaves EV owners questioning whether a gas-guzzler would financially suit them better, but to compress a lengthy debate into a concise point; you’re better off with an EV.As for the physical process of charging an EV at a public charging spot, it’s almost identical to that of traditional refuelling. Approach the charging station gently with no sudden movements, plug your vehicle in, and retreat backwards whilst maintaining eye contact with the charger at all times.Unlike a fuel bowser, however, you can then walk off and have a coffee, or write a short novel, while waiting for the process to finish.

Can you transfer demerit points to someone else?The good news is, in some cases, yes you can, and it’s perfectly legal. Of course, there’s a catch or two.Meantime, the letter in the mailbox looks ominous. Its clearly not a Christmas or birthday card. You open it to discover it’s a traffic infringement notice. And it’s a double whammy.Like many driving fines, you’ve been slugged $300 and had three demerit points added to your license. Or have you? Can demerit points be transferred?This article is not a handbook on how to contest a speeding fine. But the number of people who carry out internet searches along the lines of 'nominate infringement notice' suggests being able to pass on undeserved fines and demerit points is an issue for a lot of drivers.And the news is good, because, in some cases, you can have that fine and those points legally transferred to somebody else’s license.The kicker is that the person who will ultimately take the fine and points must be the person who actually committed the offence listed in the notice.In that sense, you’re not transferring fines and demerit points, because you should never have been liable for them in the first place.However, thanks to the way some Australian road laws are written (to allow for camera-detection, mainly) this mechanism has become essential to protect the innocent from the law. Which sounds appalling, and is.This is all about the shortcomings of speed and red-light camera law enforcement. And it recognises the fact that while the camera is perfectly capable of identifying the vehicle in the photo, it has pretty much no idea what human was actually driving it at the time. In a typical family with teenagers, for instance, there could be four or five or even more regular drivers of the same vehicle.But what if you can’t accurately name the driver at fault? That gets a bit messier and it can vary slightly between states and territories.One example is if you sold the car and the new owner hadn’t transferred it into their name before the offence was committed (which is why the infringement notice came to your address and not theirs).In that case you can apply to have the fine and points struck from your licence. Being able to identify that person will make the process much simpler and easier.That’s why you should always take a photo of the license of anybody you don’t know personally who buys or borrows your car.Perhaps the car in the photograph was not yours at all, but a car with stolen or fake number plates fitted that match your car’s number plate.Sometimes, the states trip over themselves and send a fine to a car with a matching number plate that is actually registered legally to that number, but from another state. Again, you can apply to have the offence torn up as far as you’re concerned.Perhaps you’ve been the victim of somebody else who has incorrectly transferred a fine into your name, even though you’re not the guilty party.Again, there’s a legal process for putting this right. There are also cases where, for example, a company car with no log-book that could have dozens of different drivers, gets detected by a camera.If the identity of the driver truly can’t be verified, then the points and fine are usually commuted to a massive fine for the company that owns it as well as, in some cases, a registration suspension of several months.Again, there are variables from state to state and, in Victoria, for instance, none of the above applies if the vehicle was unregistered at the time of the alleged offence. The owner is liable and that’s about it, unless the car was stolen at the time.Also, this ability to nominate another driver applies only to certain offences. And you can only nominate someone else for fine costs and demerit points in the case of a camera-based detection situation.For instance, an on-the-spot traffic fine where you’re stopped by police and booked the old fashioned way, doesn’t need this nomination option because the officer will already have established the driver’s identity.For this reason, drink or drug-driving offences can’t be palmed off to another driver, either.You also need to make sure you tackle the problem as quickly as possible. Depending on the state, you will have probably 21 or 28 days to make your application to have the fine and points transferred. Leave it longer than this and you’re possibly stuck with them regardless of whether you were driving the car at the time or not.So how do you go about the process of having the points and fines transferred? What happens when you nominate another driver?In most states, you can apply online to have your case considered. This is where the three to four-week time limit applies, so it needs to be tackled promptly.Once lodged, the matter will be given due consideration and a ruling will be made. If successful, the fine and demerit points will be applied to the nominated driver’s licence.In some cases, the nominated driver will be told who nominated them, but in cases of family violence or other dangers, an internal review might hide this information from the other driver.But can you give, rather than transfer, fine points to someone else? As in, what if a family member agrees to take the hit for you. This is often talked about, but is an offence and carries penalties of its own if you’re caught.In Victoria, for instance, should you falsely nominate a driver to take the points and speeding fine, you could be fined up to $10,000 and have your licence suspended. The fine is even bigger for corporations taking the same approach.And what about those on their L-plates who need a licensed driver beside them to be legally at the wheel? If a learner driver speeds who is responsible for the fines and points?This is a pretty simple one: While the person in the passenger seat must be currently licensed and not affected by drugs or alcohol, the law states that it’s the driver (the L-plater) who ultimately takes responsibility for their actions.Even in WA where there are no engine restrictions, no towing or passenger restrictions and no speed restrictions for learner drivers, there’s a maximum of four demerit points that can be accrued before the learner’s permit is suspended, so it’s a lot easier to earn a suspension as a learner (or a P-plate) driver.The best piece of advice is to not panic when the letter turns up in the mail. Provided you’re not a repeat offender, a modest speeding offence should only add one, two or maybe three demerit points to your licence.And in three years, you’re back to square one, because that’s the answer to the question of how long does it take to get your demerit points back. Although, in reality, you gain demerit points for infringements, not lose them, but the end result is exactly the same.Again, though, there are subtleties and, in NSW, even though the points will disappear from your licence after three years, they’ll stay on your permanent driving record forever.Most states have an online page with a section called 'check my demerit points' or similar. By entering your details, the page will tell you how many points you have accrued. What this page won’t do, however, is give you a tip off that you’ve been caught doing something wrong, because points don’t appear on your record until the fine has been paid and the matter finalised.

January 1, 2025 will be an important date for anyone that drives a car, ute, SUV or any type of motor vehicle in Australia. That date will mark the introduction of the New Vehicle Efficiency Standard (NVES), the Federal Government’s attempt to cut harmful new vehicle emissions as part of its wider climate change policy.

How long does it take to charge a Tesla? Well, it can take anywhere from 15 minutes to 30 hours, or more, depending on what kind of charging equipment you’re using, which model Tesla you’re charging and how you define 'charge'.

What is blue P plates in Australia? And what does P plate stand for?Most people are fairly confident in recognising what an L-Plate is and its graduating levels – red and green P plates. If you don’t, the ‘P’ in P plate refers to the driver being on a provisional licence, either P1 for red P plates for P2 for green P plates.But have you ever seen or even heard of blue P plates? And a hint, just like red P plates can fade to pink P plates, they’re not faded green P plates that look blue towards the end of their life!They’re also not the blue R plates Australia that MyCar.com.au have launched in NSW, for 'returning drivers' who have experienced road trauma to display when they are getting back into the driver's seat.Fig 1 sourced from mycar.com.auBlue P plates stemmed from a program developed by Sarah Bruce, a former VicRoads licence tester and owner of the Drive Skills 4 Life business.Drive Skills 4 Life helps learner drivers get their licence, has dedicated programs to get drivers who have experienced trauma and anxiety back on the road, as well as a NDIS plan.Sarah developed the Blue P Program to assist learner drivers and their parents with the driving skills and safety awareness necessary for the mandatory 120-hour driving experience and testing required prior to graduating to the red P plate licensing level.Sarah Bruce – owner of Drive Skills 4 Life and creator of the Blue P ProgramWhat made this program stand out was its support for the parents and carers who are supervising their learner child driver.The program was customised to the client and included skills tuition and a comprehensive booklet featuring checklists and information to encourage respectful and safe driving – all under the care of an accredited instructor.Parents also had the option of contacting the driving instructor in-between lessons to discuss areas they needed further help with and to incorporate the feedback into practical suggestions during their own lessons with their child.The biggest takeaway Sarah had from the program was that a carer's direct involvement and participation in the lessons resulted in learner drivers who were more safety conscious and retained more of their professional lesson material than those whose parents ‘sat back’ and hoped the instructor taught them everything.Parents who took on lesson feedback (even sat in the back of the learning car during initial lessons) were key to a child’s safe driving success.It makes sense because driving can become habitual, including elements that are unsafe, or not in line with the current road rules and regulations.Teaching a teenager to drive is daunting enough with the eventual eye-rolls and ‘I know how to do this’ (while they very nearly swipe a parked car to their left – lookin’ at you little bro). But instructing a mini dictator on road rules that you ‘know’ (but also might need a refresher course on) can be traumatic.The Blue P Program was designed to get the parent and the teenager ready to drive by offering after lesson support and guidance to address any concerns.You may have noticed we’ve been talking in past tense and that’s because due to confusion about the blue P plate meaning and concern people could associate it with signage for disabled parking, the initiative was renamed Driver Support Program in 2019.Then the COVID-19 pandemic struck and the program was scaled back. No longer available as a ‘package’ to purchase, Sarah instead incorporated the key elements into her professional lessons as she recognised how strong the program results were.And Sarah believes there should be more programs like the Blue P Program out there. We all want safer drivers who are better with risk assessment and being respectful on the road.Our younger drivers are also one of our most at-risk groups on the road and what better way to protect them than by giving them the skillset to become great drivers.There are currently no states in Australia that use blue P plates. But it poses the question, should we have something similar to the R plate but for those learner drivers who have undergone specialist defensive driving and/or hazard perception courses. It might encourage participation in those courses if the driver gets to display their ‘cool’ P plates.

Q: Who gets the fine if a passenger is not wearing a seatbelt? A: the driver, and usually the offending passenger as well, if they’re over the age of 16.

All-terrain (AT) tyres are tyres designed to cope with everyday driving in the city and suburbs while also able to be used for trips on gravel roads and dirt tracks with some medium-duty 4WDing in the mix.

It’s the not-knowing that’s the mental killer, isn’t it? And we’ve all been there. You were just driving along, when suddenly, there’s a flash from a camera as you pass through an intersection. Was it you? What have you done wrong?

When will diesel cars be banned in Australia? The answer is no time soon, at least on a national basis, but if you’re asking will diesel cars be banned, it seems inevitable. The future of diesel cars in Australia would best be described as limited and their phasing out inevitable because they cause pollution and this is making them increasingly unpopular.

The fastest speed limit in Australia at the time of publication is 130km/h, which is only applicable on the long stretches of freeway in the North Territory. There is no national speed limit Australia applies across all states, but 110km/h on freeways, 40km/h in a school zone and 50km/h in any built up area is common across several states.