We’ve put a lot of EVs through their paces on long-distance Australian road trips this year, from a Geely EX5 run up the coast to Brisbane to a family haul in the Xpeng X9, and one thing has become obvious every single time we plug in: the cars have gotten good, but our manners at public chargers haven’t quite caught up. So here’s our honest, road-tested EV charging etiquette Australia drivers actually need, built from real queues, real frustration, and a few mistakes we’ve made ourselves along the way.

Contents

• Why Charging Etiquette Suddenly Matters
• Mistake #1: “Camping” on the Charger After You’re Done
• Mistake #2: Charging to 100% When You Don’t Need To
• Mistake #3: ICEing the Bay
• Mistake #4: Not Checking the App Before You Walk Away
• Mistake #5: Plugging In Next to Someone and Halving Everyone’s Power
• Mistake #6: Being Precious About the Cable
• Mistake #7: Treating Newer EV Drivers Like They’re in the Way
• Boiled Down: Our Quick-Reference Checklist
• The Verdict
• Frequently Asked Questions

Why Charging Etiquette Suddenly Matters

A few years ago, most public chargers we pulled up to on a road trip were quiet enough that etiquette barely came into it. That’s changed fast. With more EVs on the road every month, popular stops along major routes are starting to feel the strain, especially around long weekends and school holidays, and a bad habit that used to be harmless now genuinely costs the next person in line real time. This is exactly the gap our road trip EV charging guide is trying to fill, because most of what’s published online covers how to plug in, not how to behave once you’re plugged in.

Mistake #1: “Camping” on the Charger After You’re Done

This is the one that comes up in every single road trip forum, and we’ve watched it happen in real time on our own stops. A car finishes charging, hits 100%, and just… sits there, plugged in, while the driver finishes lunch inside. Meanwhile someone else is parked nearby, watching the app, waiting for the bay to free up.

Most networks now actively discourage this. The NRMA network, for example, applies an idle fee of roughly $1 per minute once charging stops, after a 10-minute grace period, specifically to stop this exact behaviour. Our advice from every trip we’ve done: set a phone alarm for when your charge is due to finish, and treat that alarm as non-negotiable. It’s one of the simplest wins in any list of public EV charger tips, and it costs you nothing except walking back to the car a few minutes earlier than you’d like.

Mistake #2: Charging to 100% When You Don’t Need To

We were guilty of this ourselves on an early road trip, sitting at a fast charger well past 80% because it felt like the “safe” thing to do. It isn’t, and it isn’t fast either. DC fast chargers push power hard up to around 80%, then taper off dramatically to protect the battery, which means the last 20% can take roughly as long as the first 80%. On a busy stretch of highway, that’s the difference between a 20-minute stop and a 40-minute one, for a top-up you probably didn’t need.

Unless you’re about to cross a genuinely long gap between chargers, aim to unplug around 80% and get back on the road. It’s better for the car’s battery long-term, and it’s one of the fastest ways to be a considerate EV road tripper.

Mistake #3: ICEing the Bay

“ICEing” is when a petrol or diesel car parks in an EV charging bay, blocking it from the vehicles that actually need it. It sounds like a niche annoyance until you’ve pulled into a rural charging stop on a tight schedule and found the only fast charger blocked by someone popping into the servo for a pie. It’s more than just rude too: parking in an EV bay without charging is illegal in Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and the ACT, with fines that can run from a few hundred dollars up into the thousands depending on the state.

If you’re driving a petrol or diesel car, this one’s simple: treat EV bays exactly like an accessible parking spot. If you’re an EV driver who’s just arrived to find your bay ICEd, snapping a photo and reporting it to the charging network is usually more productive than sitting there fuming, and it helps flag repeat offenders at busy sites.

Mistake #4: Not Checking the App Before You Walk Away

Nearly every public charger in Australia now runs through an app that shows real-time charging status, estimated finish time, and often a live queue if other drivers are waiting. We’ve seen plenty of people plug in, wander off without opening the app once, and come back forty minutes later assuming that’s roughly how long it’d take, only to find they’d been sitting fully charged for the last fifteen.

Checking the app isn’t just good EV charging etiquette Australia wide, it protects your own time too. Estimated finish times can shift depending on temperature, how many other cars are drawing power at the same site, and your battery’s own charge curve, so a quick glance saves you from either rushing back too early or holding up the queue too long.

Mistake #5: Plugging In Next to Someone and Halving Everyone’s Power

This one catches a lot of people out because it isn’t obvious just by looking at the hardware. Many fast charging stations share power across two connectors on the same unit, meaning if you plug in next to someone else at a shared pod, you might both end up splitting what would otherwise be a single car’s full charging speed. A charger rated at 150kW can drop to something closer to 75kW per car once a second vehicle joins in.

If there’s an empty, unshared charger available at the same site, use that one first, especially if you’re in a hurry. It’s a small decision that makes a real difference to both your charging time and the next driver’s, and it’s one of those details that rarely makes it into a basic road trip EV charging guide but genuinely changes how your stop plays out.

Mistake #6: Being Precious About the Cable

Small thing, but it adds up: leaving the charging cable trailing across a walkway, dumped on the ground instead of back on its holster, or wrapped in a way that makes it awkward for the next person to use. It’s one of the most overlooked public EV charger tips out there, precisely because it feels so minor. We’ve tripped over more than one abandoned cable ourselves at a dimly lit rural stop. Coil it properly, hang it back where it belongs, and treat it the way you’d want to find it.

Mistake #7: Treating Newer EV Drivers Like They’re in the Way

As EV adoption grows, there are more first-timers fumbling with an unfamiliar app or asking which plug fits their car, and we’ve watched a few impatient drivers sigh loudly rather than just helping. Every seasoned EV road tripper was a nervous first-timer at some point too. A quick bit of guidance costs you thirty seconds and genuinely makes the whole public charging network feel less intimidating for the next wave of drivers joining it.

Boiled Down: Our Quick-Reference Checklist

If you take nothing else from this, here’s the short version of good manners drivers should be following at any public charger on a long trip:

• Set an alarm and move your car the moment charging finishes.
• Unplug around 80% unless you genuinely need the extra range.
• Never park in an EV bay unless you’re charging.
• Check the app rather than guessing your finish time.
• Use an unshared charger when one’s available.
• Put the cable back properly when you’re done.
• Help out a driver who looks lost at the charger.

The Verdict

None of this is complicated, and none of it should stop you from planning an EV road trip. If anything, the more we’ve driven electric across Australia this year, the more we’ve noticed that good charging etiquette is really just good road trip manners applied to a new kind of pit stop. Follow the basics in this road trip EV charging guide, and you’ll spend less time waiting, less time arguing over bays, and more time actually enjoying the drive.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is considered bad EV charging etiquette in Australia?

The biggest offenders are “camping” on a charger after your car has finished, charging all the way to 100% during busy periods, and parking a petrol or diesel car in an EV bay without charging. All three directly cost other drivers time at a shared, limited resource.

Is it illegal to park in an EV charging bay without charging?

Yes, in several states. Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and the ACT all have penalties for non-charging vehicles parked in EV bays, with fines that can range from a few hundred dollars up into the thousands depending on the state and site.

Should I charge my EV to 100% at a public fast charger?

Generally, no, unless you’re facing a long gap before the next charger. DC fast charging slows down significantly past 80%, so the last 20% of a charge can take almost as long as the first 80%, holding up the charger for everyone else waiting.

What are the most important public EV charger tips for a road trip?

Set an alarm for when your charge finishes, aim to unplug around 80%, check the charging app rather than guessing, and use an unshared charger when one’s available so you’re not splitting power with another car.

Why do some fast chargers charge slower when two cars are plugged in?

Many charging stations share total power output across two connectors on the same unit. If another car plugs into the paired connector, you can both end up charging at roughly half the site’s rated speed, which is worth checking before you commit to a spot.