You are hereby receiving an update on the latest information regarding the sale of Easee Home and Easee Charge chargers in Belgium. The Belgian Institute for Postal Services and Telecommunications (BIPT) has issued a communication regarding the sale of EASEE charging stations. An unaddressed letter was sent to a limited number of market players. No one within the sector federation EV Belgium nor the manufacturer EASEE itself had received communication from BIPT. As a result, the sector considered this as possible spam because why would BIPT with expertise in Telegraphy and Post suddenly make a statement about charging stations without contacting the manufacturer?
BIPT competent?
According to BIPT, this type of charging post, which contains radio components, was found not to comply with the requirements of Directive 2014/53/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 April 2014 on the harmonization of the laws of the Member States relating to the making available on the market of radio equipment (hereinafter “the RED”). In Sweden, the Elsäkerhetsverket (ESV), the Swedish Electrical Safety Authority lashed out at the EASEE case and issued a Swedish sales ban. BIPT’s decision is the result of EU/EEA notification procedures. This means that upon notification of a measure taken by an authority in one member state, an authority of another member state becomes aware of it. This authority can then examine this notification and determine whether, in its view, measures should be taken for the products on its territory and if so, which ones. BIPT declares itself competent on the basis of this directive, which, by the way, was also used in Sweden. But today, every new car also contains a Sim card, is BIPT suddenly concerned with the entire operation or safety of a car? Or only about the component that can transmit radio waves? Since this is the first time the BIPT is pronouncing on charging stations, it seems to us advisable to look politically and legally at exactly which body is competent to control electrical equipment such as charging stations? What is a difference with the GSM module within the charging station that does transmit radio waves, but that is a difference with whole device and safety around electrical circuits. A question that will most likely continue to cause discussion at the industry level.
What is now being said by the BIPT?
In its communication, BIPT orders that the Easee Home and Easee Charge chargers should be taken off the market. Also, according to BIPT, these products should no longer be commercialized or installed. Neither ESV nor BIPT have decided on a recall of Easee chargers already installed. BIPT’s letter does state that “the manufacturer should be contacted to apply the corrective measures required by Elsäkerhetsverket to equipment already installed at customers’ premises.” It is important to note that Easee ASA has submitted a rectification plan to ESV in Sweden. This plan has now also been shared with BIPT in Belgium. Once this is agreed upon, all installers will know what to do in terms of modifications to existing installations. But ESV has not yet approved this plan.
Clarity is urgently needed on who has authority over the safety of electrical installations! Is that the Post and Telecom regulator or are there other bodies?
Bart Massin
What is the problem now?
If we put our ear to the ground at EASEE, they strongly emphasize that “it is only about the documentation and not about the safety of the product.” You can also read that on their website. EASEE further emphasizes that the safety of their products has always been their priority. They confirm that they employ rigorous testing and quality control processes to ensure that their products meet or exceed applicable safety standards. Their products have been extensively tested by leading independent and accredited testing laboratories such as TÃœV SÃœD. Nkom, the Norwegian regulatory body, after its own investigation, announces that it will not ban sales in Norway. In their press release, Nkom says they have no evidence to conclude that the Easee Home and Easee Charge chargers are unsafe. Both chargers can continue to be used as usual. Consumers in Belgium can also continue to use the Easee Home and Easee Charge chargers as usual.
What is the solution?
EASEE realizes that their documentation should have been in better order before they launched the Easee Home and Easee Charge. They appreciate that ESV made them aware of their view of documentation requirements and have learned a lot from the situation they found themselves in. They work with both independent and accredited testing labs and authorities to ensure that all documentation is present, approved and verified in all respects when we bring new products to market. So in October, new EASEE Home and Charge devices are expected to be compatible with the current housing, allowing projects with EASEE ready backplates to continue perfectly with the new products. Possibly there will be a price increase by EASEE on the new products, but that has not yet been fully confirmed. A strange reaction after this bumpy track, we as Stroohm would certainly not recommend it to them. For the existing installations, we read on an EASEE blog that for the Swedish market they have proposed to ESV that the safety sticker be placed not on the inside on the chargeberry but on the outside of the device. In addition, they would also provide new documentation in accordance with the regulations. We do expressly call on EASEE to quickly come forward with a clear Belgian rectification plan.
Inspections now suddenly also banned for existing installations
The sector is trying to deal with the BIPT’s decision that was applied without consultation and without a transition period. And then the FPS Economy comes out with a note prohibiting inspections of EASEE devices, regardless of when they were installed, this while BIPT does not prohibit or even advise against the use of the EASEE charging stations already installed. All installations were and are AREI compliant and therefore have an external circuit breaker and differential operation which is a double safety on top of the built-in safety which is insufficiently documented. So the solution for existing installations is to replace the product with new EASEE charging points that are identical but have proper documentation. A lot of time lost for drivers wanting to charge their new electric vehicle. A negative experience, where we as an industry are victims of sub-optimal governance. In addition, STROOHM is a brand independent supplier of charging solutions. So we always have multiple suppliers behind us with which we can guarantee a stable offering to our Fleet customers. So we as stroohm immediately switched to other products. This has had a huge impact on our planning, our purchasing, our technicians and most importantly our partners: Fleet managers and their drivers. We wish to explicitly thank everyone for their flexibility and we hope with the solutions we have offered to be a reliable partner in this rapidly changing world of charging stations where bankruptcies or a sales ban have quite some impact.
By Bart Massin
Chief e-mobility Officer
Fleet.services@stroohm.be