As the 2030 ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel cars and vans fast approaches, spurring on the nationwide adoption of electric vehicles (EVs), smart tariffs are still often touted as the best-value option for drivers. Among them, Octopus Energy’s Intelligent Go tariff is widely viewed as the leading low-cost choice.

But is it really the most cost-effective option for everyone?

The answer is more complex than many realise. That’s why it’s important for both businesses and EV drivers to better understand how today’s smart tariffs actually work. 

And which ones may be costing them more than they think. 

How do Smart EV Tariffs Work?

Before deciding which smart tariff offers the best value, it’s important to understand how they work. In general terms, they are electricity plans that allow EV owners to charge when demand on the grid is lower. The most common type is a time-of-use tariff, which gives users lower rates during off-peak hours, usually between midnight and 5 or 6 am. Other types include dynamic tariffs, where prices change in real time based on market conditions, and tariffs that work with integrated smart scheduling. The aim of all, though, is to encourage charging when demand on the grid is low.  

To access these tariffs, EV owners typically need a smart meter and, if using a tariff with integrated scheduling, a compatible home charger. Whether charging during nightly off-peak hours or responding to real-time pricing, drivers can plug in, charge and save hundreds of pounds a year.

So far, so filling for your pocket, right?

The Perception of Cost-Saving vs. the Reality

This perception of cost-saving is exactly why so many people turn to Octopus’s Intelligent Go tariff to charge their EV. Like other smart tariffs, it encourages charging during off-peak hours to benefit from lower rates, while also using integrated smart scheduling to add extra charging windows outside these times, depending on grid conditions.

However, there are some important limitations that today’s users may not be aware of. For example, other EV tariffs, such as those from providers like Good Energy or So Energy, can offer lower overall costs depending on how and when energy is used. Of course, to understand how these tariffs offer the flexibility they need, drivers need to consider peak and off-peak pricing, standing charges, and their own charging habits, such as longer charging needs for frequent long journeys.

The more significant issue, though, is that Octopus operates largely as a closed system. While it builds flexibility into its tariff rates, which in theory is passed on to customers, it also aims to keep users within its own ecosystem by requiring customers to use the Octopus energy hardware. This can make it harder for users to switch to other providers if new and potentially better options enter the market.

Because home energy hardware isn’t something most people can easily replace, as an Octopus customer, you risk being locked into a system where, over time, you may be stuck on a less competitive tariff with limited ability to move elsewhere, access wider optimisation or use your EV as an energy asset to earn additional revenue.

Suddenly, your pocket’s not feeling so full anymore.

Why the Value of Smart EV Tariffs is in Decline

Smart tariffs, which grew rapidly after 2020, were initially attractive because they offered clear and consistent savings for EV drivers and businesses willing and able to change usage to off-peak hours. But market conditions have changed a lot in the last six years, and those early benefits are becoming less reliable.

For one, off-peak charging windows, which once offered long hours of low-cost energy, are becoming shorter as electricity demand increases and grids come under pressure. At the same time, peak rates are rising, making energy used outside those windows more expensive.

This growing pressure on the grid is also making pricing less stable. As supply and demand fluctuate more often, so too do the savings associated with smart tariffs. As a result, customers are increasingly finding that their costs vary from month to month due to factors outside their control. Where once fixed smart tariffs offered a dependable long-term solution, they’re now far less reliable, a fact which has pushed their value into decline.

Moving Towards Smarter Savings with an Energy Operating System (EOS)

Luckily, today, there is an alternative.

Rather than relying on a single tariff, customers can look beyond being locked into one provider or tariff and move towards a model that uses intelligent energy optimisation across multiple tariffs to maximise value.

An Energy Operating System, or EOS, works across many energy suppliers to provide a more flexible and dynamic approach to energy management, which, in turn, helps businesses and consumers save more.

There are two specific ways that it does this:

1. Smarter optimisation

An EOS continuously analyses real-time market conditions to automatically select the most cost-effective charging windows. The bottom line with this is that customers will always benefit from the best available pricing.

2. Revenue through flexibility

Participation in grid services and flexibility markets is how an open energy operating system can make you money as well as save it. Energy assets such as EV chargers or batteries can generate additional revenue when you sell unused energy back to the grid.

The Upside for Businesses

The upsides of using an open energy operating system for both businesses and consumers are obvious: lower energy bills and greater revenue opportunities.

But for businesses, there are further benefits to be gained. These include being able to manage their own customer relationships while having the freedom to innovate in ways that can help future-proof them from any sudden market turns.

Final Thoughts

The fact is that smart tariffs like Intelligent Go have played an important role in advancing EV adoption. However, with the market continuing to grow and change and energy costs becoming far more complex nowadays, single, closed tariffs are not the one-size-fits all solution they were once believed to be.

Flexibility is now the key driver to ensure savings and revenue for both the individual consumer and larger businesses. And flexibility is exactly what a single, closed tariff like Octopus’s Intelligent Go just doesn’t offer.