Electric Car Charger - How To Determine Fees & HOA Approvals Needed

Yes he should have asked permission before installing. This would NOT be a "Fee" thing. Part of the allowing of the car charger is agreeing to pay for the electricity for it. If your HOA is able to determine the useage. Which could be a comparison of past bills to the date of installation. Then you all can agree to have them responsible for that cost if they have the charger.

It is still sticky legal area if you can deny the installation of this equipment. However, I would approve it but make an agreement that says above the HOA dues whoever installs extra equipment like this is responsible for that cost. Which is still hard to prove but I would definetely do the difference in utility bill and then round the number to like $25. Make sure this is a new rule added in the by-laws and then to the CC&R's when your HOA gets around to updating.

Best option would be to have the station wired to the members meter (at the members expense). Then there would be no need for the Association to make that determination.

Second option would be to have a power meter installed which the Association or the Power Company uses to determine the amount.

Third option would be to instal a temporary meter on that line and determine the average monthly amount. Then charge a set fee and hope it's enough to cover.


HOA approval is not the same as "membership" approval.
The HOA is the Association.
Powers and authority of the Association are exercised by the Board of Directors.
Therefore, HOA approval would simply be approval from the Board and/or an Architectural Committee if one exists (it will depend on your governing documents)


The Chargers I've seen require 220 volt supply line on their own dedicated circuit.

Per Davis-Stirling electric charging stations web page:

Owner Requirements. If a homeowner wants to install an EV charging station in a common area or an exclusive use common area (his parking space), he must meet applicable health and safety standards and requirements imposed by state and local authorities as well as all other applicable zoning, land use or other ordinances, or land use permits. (Civ Code §1353.9(c).) In addition, he must obtain HOA approval and agree in writing to the following (Civ. Code §1353.9(f)(1)):

1) Comply with the association's architectural standards.

2) Use a licensed contractor to install the station.

3) Within 14 days of approval, provide a certificate of insurance that names the common interest development as an additional insured under the homeowner's insurance policy.

4) Pay for electricity usage associated with the station.

Duties & Liability. The homeowner and each successive homeowner of the EV charging station shall be responsible for all of the following (Civ. Code §1353.9(f)(2)):

Damage. Damage to the station, common areas, exclusive common areas, or adjacent units resulting from the installation, maintenance, repair, removal, or replacement of the station.

Maintenance. Maintenance, removal, repair, and replacement of the electric vehicle charging station until it has been removed from the common area or exclusive use common area.

Electricity. Electricity associated with the station.

Disclosure. Disclosing the EV charging station to buyers and the related responsibilities of the homeowner.

Insurance. Maintain an umbrella liability coverage policy in the amount of one million dollars ($1,000,000) covering owner's obligations and naming the HOA as an additional insured under the policy with a right to notice of cancellation. (Civ. Code §1353.9(f)(e).)

John,

I think your math is wrong.

Watts are volts times amps. 10 amps at 120 volts are 1200 watts. Using those watts for one hour would equal 1200 watt-hours or 1.2KWH.

Using the charger for 8 hours at that rate would use 9.6 KWH. 30 days of that would be 288 KWH. If the charge for power is 9.6 cents per KWH, the monthly cost would be $27.65.

It would not be unreasonable for the association and the car owner to agree on a price for their use of electricity in the garage.

LarryB13;

OOPS ~ you are correct

i was off by a factor of 10

@ $25-30 per month it IS an issue

ps. re: liability ~ lithium ion battery electrolyte is HIGHLY FLAMMABLE

see: Boeing aircraft fires

It is a portable charger plugged into the garage outlet.

Agreed!
The board should address the issue now and establish a rule addressing the use of charging stations.

One significant issue is the loading of the circuit in question. At best, it's a 20 Amp circuit that's intended for utility usage here & there. i.e. It wasn't designed with the capacity to handle several high-demand devices (vehicle chargers) at once. Get more than a couple of people wanting to draw off the same circuit and you'll surely have issues with breakers tripping.

I would suggest requiring the owner pay for the installation of a dedicated, metered outlet on its own circuit. It won't be cheap though.

http://www.marinscope.com/novato_advance/article_5ead14a2-86af-11e2-90a5-0019bb2963f4.html

Thanks again for all the useful feedback. I'm still unclear if the Davis Stirling requirement for the insurance policy of $1,000,000 is required for a portable charging machine? Is there confirmation one way or another on this point? I would want the owner to get this, but unsure if I can request that if it's a portable charger...

Tim,

I am inclined to agree with you that the portable charger plugged into a wall outlet in front of the car is not a "charging station."

The problem, as others have pointed out and I have to agree, is what happens when the next guy shows up with an EV? At some point the circuit will become overloaded. If they are lucky, the circuit breaker pops before any damage is done, but I have seen too many do-it-yourselfers try to get around popping circuit breakers that an electrical fire will not be far behind.

As burdensome as it is on the car owner, the association would be best to follow D-S to the letter. I agree that this would be a non-issue in a single-family-home community but when shared resources are involved the association has a duty to protect its members and its assets. D-S provides an avenue to accommodate the EV owner while preserving the shared resources.

If the EV owner wants to charge his car in the communal garage, let him install a charging station at his own expense and provide the association with the required insurance.

I hate to be a hardcase on this and have no doubt that the association can accomodate that one EV without making the guy jump through hoops. The problem, as stated above, will occur when the second EV shows up. The association may not even know about the second one until the fire trucks show up.

Yep, I agree there is a potential problem in allowing this to continue.

I was just answering the question asked as I had already provided links to the davis-stirling page and offered other opinions based on the initial question earlier in the thread.

THANK YOU TO ALL WHO RESPONDED - this information has been very helpful. What a great forum.

I think it does apply, Tim.
With the exception of not knowing what the California Building Standards Code specifies, a portable charger does everything else described.

The only difference a portable charger plugged into a 110V outlet makes is this:
(4) A homeowner shall not be required to maintain a homeowner liability coverage policy for an existing National Electrical Manufacturers Association standard alternating current power plug.

So if he's plugging into an existing outlet, he doesn't need the $1 million liability coverage (a silly lapse of judgement by the D-S author, imho). Everything else, I see as being applicable (in my "I'm not a lawyer and am thankful to not live in CA" world).

Meter it, charge for electricity.

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