BMW also makes charging easier by integrating Plug & Charge

Use a single card and app. This is how users want to be able to charge their electric cars, without having to use different apps on their mobile phone depending on the charging point operator, or sign up with different operators in order to pay. The solution is Plug & Charge technology, which allows the vehicle to connect and identify itself automatically with the charging station, and allows the customer to bill all their charges under a single contract and card.

Following Audi and Mercedes-Benz, it is now BMW that announces it will integrate Plug & Charge for the first time in its electric vehicles in mid-2023. In addition, BMW Charging is expanding its charging service offering with new features, including the possibility of using Plug & Charge also at charging points of the IONITY network.

Plug & Charge: charging easily and flexibly

With Plug & Charge, the only thing the user of an electric car has to do is choose a compatible charging point and connect the vehicle. Communication between the charging point and the car takes place through the charging cable itself, so there is no need to activate the energy transfer using an app or a card, as is usually the case.

Instead, the charging process starts automatically, and payment is also made automatically once charging is complete. In the case of BMW Plug & Charge, a novelty is that customers can have different contracts, thanks to “Multi Contract Plug & Charge”. This means that the data needed to access the different contracts can be stored digitally in the vehicle, making it possible to choose between their BMW Charging account or switch to other contracts with individual providers.

The driver only has to select and confirm the corresponding contract in the vehicle menu once the charging process is finished. A feature that can be very useful, for example, for company car users who manage two accounts for billing purposes: the company’s own account or their personal account.