Big rise in electric vehicle charging cable thefts

The theft of electric vehicle (EV) charging cables is becoming a "significant issue" in the West Midlands.

That's what three companies that install these chargers have told the BBC, calling for wider action from both the police and the government.

InstaVolt, which owns EV charging points in the region, said that 13 of its sites had been targeted 33 times.

West Mercia Police said it was "acting proactively to identify offenders" and take preventative measures.

Drivers of EVs in the region said they were concerned about the growing issue.

Sunney Singh, who has been driving EVs for about six years, said: "If I come to an EV station where the cable has been cut, it's going to ruin the ability for me to charge the car. So it's a concern, for sure."

Jo Malam said: "I can understand why they'd be taking them, and it's an easy gain I suppose.

"To get to a charging point and find that there's no head on to charge it would be a massive problem because normally you've not got enough energy to get to the next one."

Keith Burry said: "We're all trying to do our bit for the environment, and we need to charge.

"If vandals and thieves take chargers away we're not going to go forward, it's not going to help.

"It's going to give more people concerns and may even stop people buying electric cars."

Chief executive of InstaVolt Delvin Lane said the thefts had cost his company about £410,000 since November 2023, which he described as "frustrating".

"This isn't just an InstaVolt problem, this is an industry problem. The biggest impact is to drivers," he said.

A spokesperson for Osprey, another company in the area, said they had seen a sharp rise in thefts and were rolling out CCTV coverage and lights to try to reduce them.

"We've also introduced alarm systems that trigger when cables are tampered with, as well as physical protections like cable sheaths with built-in traceable liquid," they added.

Another EV charger installer, Motor Fuel Group, also reported an increase in organised crime targeting their work, including the theft of charging cables.

The crimes were disruptive to their work due to the repairs needed and meant the firm lost money replacing them, a spokesperson said.

Measures aimed at tackling the thefts including using tougher cables and marking equipment with ink which could be traced, spokespeople for two of the firms said.

Figures from West Mercia Police, released in response to a Freedom of Information request by the BBC, revealed there was one reported EV cable theft from 2022-23 but 19 in 2024.

Sgt Daniel Townsend described it as a "new and emerging" crime and they were working with firms to try to tackle it.

"We have mapped electrical charging points in our communities so we can respond quickly to prevent any further offences if an charing point has been targeted," he added.

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