Volvo is offering British car buyers one year’s free electricity to charge their new plug-in hybrid car, with the launch of its Take Charge campaign. The offer is available across Volvo’s range of plug-in hybrid models.

Volvo says its aim is to maximise the potential fuel- and emissions-saving potential of its hybrid technology by encouraging people to plug in their car and keep the hybrid system’s high-voltage battery charged. This will ensure their car can make full use of electric power, reducing tailpipe emissions and fuel consumption on any journey.

The offer is automatically available to any customer purchasing a new Volvo plug-in hybrid, from now until 30 June 2020. The electricity costs for charging their car will be calculated from May 2020 and repaid to them at the end of the 12-month period, based on a third-party-provided average cost of electricity in the UK.

Just how much energy each customer uses will be monitored via the Volvo On Call app. This logs how much power the car consumes, and also allows the owner to monitor the charge status of their car’s battery via their mobile device.

The offer is open to both private and business customers. Because Volvo’s intention is to encourage drivers to get into the habit of keeping their car’s hybrid battery charged, it’s the company car driver who will receive the refund at the end of the year rather than their employer. The new offer applies to the entire line-up, including the recently launched XC40 T5 plug-in hybrid compact SUV.

Kristian Elvefors, Volvo Car UK Managing Director, said: “At Volvo, in keeping with our Swedish roots, we’ve always taken a keen interest in looking after the environment. Our recently stated ambition to become a carbon-neutral company by 2040 shows we are serious about addressing climate change.

“It’s crucial that we help our plug-in hybrid customers understand how they can make the most of their car’s electric potential. So, by meeting their electricity charging costs for a year, we can encourage them to develop the good habit of regularly recharging their car’s battery, as well as saving them money at the same time.”

Volvo’s carbon-neutral ambition
Volvo says the free electricity initiative is just one element in its plans to achieve a substantial reduction in the lifecycle carbon footprint of all its new cars. The company recently announced its intention to achieve a cut of 40 per cent between 2018 and 2025, a key step towards its goal of becoming a climate-neutral business by 2040. By adopting cleaner, electrified powertrains, it will bring down overall tailpipe emissions by 50 per cent by 2025, while also working to significantly reduce the environmental impact of its manufacturing, supply chain, logistics and other operations, targeting a 25 per cent reduction by 2025.

From next year, the first question asked of visitors to Volvo’s customer website will be whether they want their car with a plug, or not. At the same time, a new Recharge branding will be introduced for the company’s growing range of plug-in hybrid and fully electric cars.