83 Signals

Public Charging Payment Reliability Service

Help charging operators verify that drivers can see the price, pay by card, and start charging without downloading an app.

Added Oct 4, 2026

Charging operations

Payment reliability

Field testing

Opportunity score

/ 100

Medium opportunity

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The Problem

Drivers encounter public chargers where payment requires an account, an app, or mobile reception they do not have. Even sites offering credit card payment can fail at the connection between the terminal and charging software. App wallets reduce some fragmentation but leave account setup and connectivity barriers, while a working payment terminal alone does not prove that charging will start.

Potential Solution

Offer charging operators field testing and fault diagnosis for the complete journey from displayed price through card authorization, charging start, and final receipt. Test actual charging sessions across agreed vehicle and payment combinations, including scenarios where the driver's phone has no reception. Deliver reproducible failure reports to the operator and its equipment vendors, verify repairs, and offer recurring site checks.

Why Now?

The supplied August and September 2026 discussions repeatedly identify payment integration and app dependence as unresolved charging barriers. An explicit discussion of testing card readers with charging software makes a focused operational service more defensible than another consumer payment wallet.

Market validation

Search demand

Trend snapshot pending

Competition

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Showing 1-20 of 83 signals

Apple App StoreJul 12, 2026

Blink Charging Mobile App

“Our payment system changed” Frustrated for 15 minutes at the parking garage trying to get the app to work. Added and deleted my CC only to find a $0 balance. Called customer service and the rep says that it’s “pay as you go.” Why not make that clear. Also the QR code at the station results in an error. ChargePoint is 💯 better!!

Apple App StoreJul 4, 2026

Blink Charging Mobile App

Lacking Maintenance Seems like almost every non Tesla Charger I use has one or more stalls out of service, or an error with the payment device, etc. only 2 stall work at this location and 1 stall is completely missing a charger.

Apple App StoreJun 23, 2026

Blink Charging Mobile App

Unusable app The EV charging experience should not be cumbersome or complicated to perform. Blink charging manages to make me despise charging an EV in public. You need to download a new app, create an account and manually input card information just to start a (FREE) charging session! On top of that, the chargers themselves do not function properly leaving me stranded. And when I call support for help, a guy has the audacity to be angry at me? I have never

Apple App StoreOct 9, 2026

ChargePoint®

Faulty Queue Assignment, Inactive NFC Reader, and a Painful App A very frustrating charging experience. I tried to use an open charger, but the system rejected it and forced me onto a waitlist while the spot sat empty. After waiting several minutes, I was directed to a charger with an unresponsive NFC reader. The app then crashed and logged me out, requiring an extra ten minutes to log into the painfully slow system just to start my session.

Apple App StoreJul 22, 2026

EVgo - Find a Fast EV Charger

Most unreliable and unusable network out there UPDATED: THEY RETALIATED I have had an EVgo membership for over 2.5 years. 95% of my attempts to use their stations end in failure. This includes all available methods to activate the charger, including autocharge, RFID card, multiple credit cards, and the mobile app, and is consistent across all locations in their network. Support has been completely useless, and has tried to tell me that the problem is with me, my car, or my first party official adapter, which all seem to work completely fine at the literally hundreds of other charging stations I’ve tried in the two years and 52,000 miles that I’ve had my car. Never and I mean NEVER plan on relying on them. UPDATE: they posted a nice reply here, meanwhile behind the scenes, THEY CLOSED MY ACCOUNT in retaliation for my complaints. Truly despicable.

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