Its reported rate rose from 68% in July 2025. The measure covers applications, not completed installations or a promised connection time.
UK Power Networks says 88% of domestic electric-vehicle chargepoint applications were approved automatically in June 2026, compared with 68% in July 2025. The distribution network operator published the figures on 20 October; they describe an application process, not a count of chargers installed.
The same update puts automatic approval of heat-pump applications at 86% in June, up from 74% the previous July. Across the two technologies together, UK Power Networks says the automatic-approval rate exceeded 86%, against 70% a year earlier. That combined figure is separate from the EV-only rate.
UK Power Networks attributes the change to digital tools, closer work with installers and refinements to its process. It also says better understanding of application requirements helped cut avoidable errors and raise the share of applications submitted correctly first time. Those are the operator’s explanations; the announcement gives no application totals or independent evaluation of each factor.
An automatic approval is an application-stage measure. Neither page reports how many chargepoints were installed, whether a particular property needs network work, or a guaranteed approval-to-energisation time. The 88% figure therefore cannot promise that an individual home installation will be approved automatically or completed by a particular date.
Sources: UK Power Networks · Transport + Energy