My experience so far with Qmerit?

[Bad Dolphin]

Then, your original statement was, at best, ambiguous. If you'd written 'the Ford chargers may not [qualify with some utilities]' I would not have taken issue with it. But, thanks for the clarification; this is the first I've heard of EVSEs that report activity to the utility (sounds like it's essentially a separate meter for your charger). This is a bit aggravating because, at least here in California, it hasn't been that long since the utilities were begging, if not demanding, that customers plan their activities (A/C, etc.) for off-peak hours to prevent brownouts/blackouts (and paying higher rates for external supply). MID advertises its EV support on local radio. It doesn't surprise me that some utilities are 'honing' in on EV power consumption (standard meters already report time of usage, and utilities already have tiered pricing structure). It may be part of the general anti-EV backlash wrought by the current administration. FWIW, I never supported the Ca. EV mandate against ICE cars--I have several sports/high perf. models--and EVs don't make sense for a lot of people, so I have no issue with that part of the backlash, and was ambivalent about the tax credits (I won't get any for my Mach-E). I also expect to eventually get an additional fee on my registration since I'm not paying California's notorious pump tax, which I think is fair (it'll likely be a couple hundred bucks a year). Now, if only the taxes and fees went exclusively to road maintenance, like they're supposed to.

As a former SoCal resident for decades, I can attest to the "interesting" aspect of the relationship to EV's, TOU and solar. And totally agree with you about road taxes and where they go...

Because we "needed" a large engine
/poor mpg vehicle to tow a large trailer (in addition to our daily drivers both of which were high performance ICE vehicles), we wanted to offset our "carbon footprint" by adding solar to our house. It was much more expensive back then, so we got a smaller system (5.4 kw) but DWP in Los Angeles had a green program going as a result of local pressure by residents. Essentially, if you timed it right (our solar company was superb at dealing with this), they would match funds, picking up half the cost of the system. And, they "let the meter run backwards" for an exact barter for energy used/energy produced.

Here in Hawaii with a much more developed solar environment, things are VERY different. Utility rates are much higher (up to .46 per KWh) and the TOU tables are counter-intuitive (perhaps because over 40% of our residences have rooftop solar and the state itself has heavily invested in solar, wind and geothermal.) The utility has explained that the rates move in tandem with the price of diesel, and also we are an island state so fuel is shipped in and shipping rates have skyrocketed.

Our peak usage (and attendant highest rates) are at night! Lowest usage (of diesel I would guess because of so much solar offset) is during the day.) Buyback of energy from customers is based on TOU and is as low as $.066 (6.6 cents) per KWh during the day--and you only get paid for "replacement" energy, so the bulk of what we send to the utility is a gift for them.

So expanding our solar has become quite influenced by the federal tax deduction, which the geniuses in this administration (well OK, they do get paid to promote fossil fuels) have just trashed.

We're about to see many solar companies go under. At the same time, the administration is also holding back already approved by Congress funds to expand EV charging stations. The expansion of EV charging networks of course deals directly with probably the biggest hold back for the volume sale of EV's--range anxiety.

This is not a good thing for us or for the next generations.

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[Silver MTB]

So I just purchased a 2025 MME Premium. I got the home charger and setup an install with Qmerit . The installers came out to do a survey before quoting. I have already ran a wire and installed a 14-50 plug in my garage and have been using the Ford mobile charger. The installer wants to use the existing wire in the garage instead of putting it on the side of the house. Which is fine. Then I get the quote. They wanted $200 for permitting. The issue is there is no permit requirements where I live. None for the State, None for the county, and I live outside any city. I asked Qmerit for a detailed breakdown of the quote but they would not give it to me. So I explained the whole job is going to take less than 2 hours and there is no equipment/wiring cost and no permitting requirements so how much are they charging you? After I called them the next day they revised the quote to $0. At this point I am wondering is this the contractor that did that or Qmerit. Did any of you have a similar experience. I also wonder how many people paid this cost when it was not needed?

So I just purchased a 2025 MME Premium. I got the home charger and setup an install with Qmerit . The installers came out to do a survey before quoting. I have already ran a wire and installed a 14-50 plug in my garage and have been using the Ford mobile charger. The installer wants to use the existing wire in the garage instead of putting it on the side of the house. Which is fine. Then I get the quote. They wanted $200 for permitting. The issue is there is no permit requirements where I live. None for the State, None for the county, and I live outside any city. I asked Qmerit for a detailed breakdown of the quote but they would not give it to me. So I explained the whole job is going to take less than 2 hours and there is no equipment/wiring cost and no permitting requirements so how much are they charging you? After I called them the next day they revised the quote to $0. At this point I am wondering is this the contractor that did that or Qmerit. Did any of you have a similar experience. I also wonder how many people paid this cost when it was not needed?

I have a 5 pin 220V/60A/1ph plug at the location I want the unit installed. It's already permitted and inspected. It's where I power my portable charger which has worked flawless for nearly 4 years. My Qmerit installer quoted me $1700 in additional installation costs above and beyond the Ford installation money, not including the charger, which I already have. I could do the whole thing myself including buying the charger with my local licensed electrical contractor for under $1400. Scam!

 

[BullittHitsTheBone]

AFAIK, Qmerit doesn't employ any installers; they just refer local electrical contractors (who is likely the person trying to gouge you). Unfortunately, if you want Ford to foot (at least part of) the bill you have to use their referral (permits, etc. are 'extra'). The contractor Qmerit sent to me was top-notch and more than fair.

 

[Silver MTB]

This is a somewhat local electrical contractor who Qmerit sent the referral. Qmerit has reached out to me to ask why I declined their gracious offer. I told them. Let's see what they do. Stay tuned for an update.

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