More and more companies are electrifying their vehicle fleets. At the same time, many employees are charging their company cars at home using their private wallboxes. This creates a new challenge for fleet managers: How can the electricity costs for these charging sessions be reimbursed fairly, transparently, and with minimal administrative effort?
Since 2026, the kilowatt-hours charged must be documented as proof for reimbursement purposes. As a result, the reliable recording of charging sessions has become more important than ever.
This is exactly where Phoenix Contact’s Charge Repay Service comes in. The solution helps companies automatically capture electricity consumption from home charging and efficiently manage the reimbursement of charging costs.
What Is Charging Cost Reimbursement?
Charging cost reimbursement is the process by which a company covers the electricity costs incurred when employees charge their electric company vehicles at home. Since the vehicle is charged using the employee’s private electricity connection, employees initially bear these expenses themselves. The costs can then be reimbursed by the employer.
Companies therefore need a process that is both transparent and efficient.
Why Is Charging Cost Reimbursement Important for Companies?
Home charging has become an essential component of many corporate e-mobility strategies. Employees benefit from the convenience of charging their vehicles overnight at home, while companies require fewer charging points at their own sites and gain greater flexibility in managing their fleets.
However, with every additional electric company vehicle, the effort required to reimburse electricity costs also increases. Without clear processes, companies quickly face additional inquiries, manual administrative tasks, and higher operational costs.
What Options Are Available for Charging Cost Reimbursement?
Since 2026, companies generally have two options for reimbursing electricity used to charge electric company vehicles at home.
Important: In both cases, the actual number of charged kilowatt-hours must be documented. The previously used fixed monthly allowances without proof of consumption are no longer permitted.
Reimbursement of Actual Electricity Costs
Under this model, the actual number of charged kilowatt-hours is multiplied by the employee’s individual electricity rate.
This approach provides the most accurate reflection of the actual costs incurred. However, administrative complexity increases because different electricity tariffs, tariff changes, and dynamic electricity pricing models must be taken into account.
Reimbursement Using a Fixed Electricity Rate
Alternatively, companies can reimburse charging costs using a standardized electricity rate per kilowatt-hour.
In this case, the charged energy volume is multiplied by a predefined electricity price. The key advantage is simplified administration because individual electricity tariffs do not need to be considered. Nevertheless, documentation of the charged kilowatt-hours remains mandatory.
How Does the Charge Repay Service Support Charging Cost Reimbursement?
Since 2026, companies must provide documented evidence of the kilowatt-hours charged by electric company vehicles if they want to reimburse charging costs in a tax-compliant manner. For fleet managers, this creates additional requirements regarding data collection, documentation, and billing.
The Charge Repay Service from Phoenix Contact supports companies by automating this process and significantly reducing administrative effort.
Instead of manually collecting charging data or regularly requesting proof from employees, relevant charging sessions can be processed digitally and made available for electricity cost reimbursement. Unlike many providers that offer home charging merely as an additional feature, the Charge Repay Service was specifically developed to address the challenges associated with charging electric company vehicles at home.
Key Benefits for Fleet Managers
Support for precise, kWh-based reimbursement of electricity used to charge company vehicles at home
Automated recording of charging sessions
Automated reimbursement of charging costs incurred
Reduced manual effort for fleet management, HR departments, and employees
Transparent and traceable reimbursement processes
Scalable solution for growing electric vehicle fleets
Easy integration with existing home charging concepts
As a result, charging cost reimbursement becomes not only simpler but also more predictable and efficient.
If you would like to learn more about the Charge Repay Service, feel free to book a non-binding consultation appointment with one of our experts: Book an appointment here
Why Fleet Managers Choose an Automated Solution
The challenge of charging cost reimbursement is not limited to documenting charged kilowatt-hours. In practice, companies need processes that remain efficient over the long term and can grow alongside their vehicle fleets.
The Charge Repay Service is not a general fleet management or charging solution with an added home charging feature. Instead, it was specifically designed to address the challenges that arise when employees charge their company vehicles at home and need to be reimbursed for the associated electricity costs.
That is why the solution focuses on precise kWh-based consumption tracking, transparent reimbursement processes, and automated repayments. Companies receive a solution that is fully dedicated to the home charging use case and supports the entire process from start to finish.
Conclusion
Charging cost reimbursement has become one of the most important components of modern electric vehicle fleets. While flat-rate allowances and manual processes often create additional administrative effort, many companies are looking for solutions that simplify the reimbursement process.
With the Charge Repay Service, fleet managers gain access to a specialized solution designed specifically for the challenges of home charging reimbursement. From recording charged kilowatt-hours and providing billing data to automating reimbursements, the service supports the entire home charging process.
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