The car does not start charging

The car is plugged in, but charging does not start or stops right away? Use this checklist to find the cause.

A charging session goes through a few steps: the charging station detects the car, checks if you are allowed to charge, decides how much current it can offer, and then the car takes that current. If you know at which step it stops, you know where to look. Start with the quick checks, then look at what the charging station shows.

1. Quick checks

The charging station is online. See How to check the connectivity of an EV Line product.
The "Stop" button is not selected in the Smappee app, and the charging station is not set to unavailable. If it is, set it back to available in the app or the Smappee Dashboard.
The charging cable is fully plugged in on both ends: in the car and, on socket versions, in the charging station.
Does the charging station need a tag or the app to start? Then present your tag or start the session in the app. Tag not working? See The RFID tag is not working.

2. What does the charging station show?

EV Wall and EV One: look at the front LED. EV Base: look at the LED on the side of the connector you use. EV Wall V4, EV One V4 and EV Dual: the display shows the status in plain text. See also What do the LED colours of my charging station mean?

What you see	What it means	What to do
No light at all	The charging station has no power.	Check the circuit breaker of the charging station and its internal RCD. Ask your installer if it trips again.
The LED does not change after plugging in (no blue, no green)	The charging station does not detect the car.	See section 3.
Blue	The charging station waits for you to identify yourself.	Present your tag or start the session in the app.
Red after presenting the tag	Your tag is refused.	See The RFID tag is not working.
Green, pulsing (breathing)	The car is charging.	No action needed. Slower than expected? Check your smart charging mode (section 4).
Green, continuous	The session is paused, or the car stopped charging.	Check the session status in the app or Dashboard: Paused (section 4) or Charging ended (section 5).
Switches between green continuous and green pulsing, with a click inside the charging station each time	The session starts and stops again and again.	See section 6.

3. The charging station does not detect the car

Unplug the charging cable and plug it back in on both ends.
Test with another charging cable (socket versions) or another car if possible. If another car charges fine, the cause is on the car side.
For installers: check that the CP wire and the earth wire of the charging cable are connected correctly inside the charging station, as described in the installation manual. Check the diagnostic messages in the Smappee Dashboard.

4. Status "Paused": Smappee stops the session

The charging station pauses the session itself, because of a setting or a smart charging rule. This is usually expected behaviour. Check which smart charging mode is active:

Solar charging: there is not enough solar surplus to charge. The session continues when there is enough surplus again.
Schedule: you are outside the time window you set.
Overload protection: large consumers in the house (oven, heat pump, ...) use the available power, so the charging station pauses to protect your main fuse. Charging resumes when the consumption drops. If this happens without a clear reason, ask your installer to check the measurements.
EV Wall V4, EV One V4 and EV Dual only: on hot days or in direct sunlight, thermal protection can lower the current or pause the session. A shaded spot helps.

See How to set up smart charging in the Smappee app?

5. Status "Charging ended": the car stops the session

The charging station keeps offering current, but the car does not take it.

Battery full or charge limit reached: check the charge limit and any charging timer in the car or the car app.
Error in the car: check the car's display or app for error messages. If the car shows no reason, contact your car dealer or manufacturer.
Other cars charge fine on this charging station? Then the cause is most likely the car, or something in the installation this specific car does not accept (see section 6).

6. The session starts and stops again and again

Check the internal RCD of the charging station. Has it tripped? Switch it back on. If it trips again, contact your installer.
Do you have a 3x230V grid (delta, common in parts of Belgium)? Some cars do not accept this grid type. Check with your car manufacturer. A common solution is to connect the charging station single-phase: ask your installer.
For installers: check that all wires are connected according to the installation manual, and measure:
- Voltage phase to neutral: between 207 V and 253 V (230 V ± 10 %)
- Voltage neutral to earth: close to 0 V, a few volts at most
- Earth resistance (TT system): below 100 Ω. Some cars are stricter than this.

Critical: Do not modify the charging cable, the plug or the socket.

7. Still not charging? Contact support

Add this information to your request so we can help you faster:

Serial number of the charging station, and on an EV Base the connector you used
What the LED or display showed after plugging in, and after presenting your tag
Session status in the app: Paused or Charging ended
Car make and model, and whether another car shows the same problem
Grid type (single phase, 3x400V + N or 3x230V), if you know it
Date and time of the failed session