Previously free: Some Aldi customers now have to pay in the parking lot

Created: 05/20/2022Updated: 05/20/2022, 15:50

By: Laura May

Extensive browsing in the supermarket while the e-car is charging its battery in the parking lot - that's over now: Aldi customers have to pay for the service from June.

That also has advantages.

Munich – Many supermarkets and discounters allow customers to charge their e-cars free of charge in their parking lots.

At Aldi-Süd this is now over - from June the service will be chargeable.

The prices should remain moderate after all.

Like Lidl, the discounter is a pioneer when it comes to e-charging stations.

Starting in 2015, the company will gradually install systems for charging e-cars for customers in its parking lots.

"Aldi-Süd has more than 1000 charging points - and the densest and most powerful charging network in German food retailing," said the Aldi press office to

.

Previously, this service was free.

During an extensive shopping, people could charge their vehicles without paying for it.

Aldi: E-charging stations in the parking lot will be chargeable from June

It is not known whether many people took advantage of this free offer and wired their car to the pillars beyond their own purchases.

In any case, Aldi is changing course and will be charging money for its offer from June.

The company confirmed this information to Merkur.de and has already informed customers about the introduction of chargeable charging via the displays of some charging stations.

The price per kilowatt hour should remain moderate in the Aldi car park: 39 cents per kWh for fast charging, 29 cents per kWh for normal charging.

"From June, Aldi-Süd will introduce a simple and intuitive payment system.

Customers usually charge more cheaply than at home,” informs the Aldi press office.

E-charging stations in Aldi parking lots will no longer be free in the future./Symbolic image © Arne Dedert/dpa

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Aldi: This is how much it will cost to charge e-cars in the parking lot from June 2022

• At the fast charging stations (CCS, up to 150 kW), charging will in future cost 39 cents per kilowatt hour.

• At the normal charging stations (type 2, 22 kW), a kilowatt hour costs 29 cents.

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Aldi: E-car drivers could even benefit from the fact that charging stations will cost something from June

Even if the news initially sounds negative for all Aldi customers driving e-cars, the prices remain fair.

The kilowatt hours can be paid for with EC and credit cards as well as Apple and Google Pay.

Charging cards can also continue to be used - the prices of the respective provider then apply.

The bottom line is that e-drivers could even benefit from the changeover.

On the one hand, the charging stations are no longer blocked by people who only came because of the free electricity.

On the other hand, Aldi announced that charging would be possible from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. wherever possible, including on Sundays and public holidays – at some locations even 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

"In the future, charging will also be possible outside of branch opening hours, in some cases around the clock," says the press office.

And: The one-hour charging time limit is no longer applicable.

If the Aldi strategy works, other markets such as Lidl or Edeka could soon make their charging stations subject to a charge.