loveelectric Alternatives for EV Salary Sacrifice in the UK (2026 Guide)
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loveelectric is one of the UK's most recognisable electric car salary sacrifice brokers. Founded in Edinburgh in September 2021 by CEO Steve Tigar, it has grown to support over 1,500 employers and 125,000 employees, and has earned genuine recognition in the market — including Best Salary Sacrifice Broker at the Broker News Awards 2025, 2025 Scottish Fintech of the Year, and B Corp certification. For employers looking to offer an EV salary sacrifice scheme, it is a legitimate and credible option.
However, the landscape changed materially in December 2025 when Perkbox announced it had entered an agreement to acquire loveelectric. For employers evaluating providers for a multi-year salary sacrifice scheme, that kind of organisational transition — with the integration, platform migration, and cultural change it brings — is a relevant factor when assessing long-term stability and service continuity.
Beyond the acquisition, there are structural differences between loveelectric and other providers that are worth understanding before committing. The scope of employer protection, how that protection is funded, the availability of salary sacrifice for charging costs, and independent provider accolades all vary meaningfully across the market.
This guide covers what loveelectric actually offers, where it genuinely excels, and where providers like The Electric Car Scheme deliver distinct advantages — so employers and employees can make an informed, evidence-based choice.
What Does loveelectric Offer?
loveelectric operates as a broker rather than a leasing company. It sources electric cars from a network of leasing partners and passes savings to employers and employees, offering an all-inclusive monthly salary sacrifice payment that covers the car, insurance, servicing, maintenance, tyres, and breakdown cover. It offers both new EVs and used electric cars through its reloved® marketplace, launched in October 2023 — the first used EV leasing platform for salary sacrifice in the UK.
The scheme is free for employers to set up. loveelectric handles onboarding, launch support, and ongoing scheme management. Employees need to earn £27,000 or more to join the scheme.
Zero Risk Guarantee
loveelectric's employer protection product is the Zero Risk Guarantee, which covers employers from Day 1 for redundancy, resignation, illness, and bereavement if an employee needs to end their lease early. However, according to The Electric Car Scheme's independent market comparison, this protection is funded through a scheme fee charged to employees as part of their monthly payment. This is a meaningful structural distinction: the cost of protection is passed on to the employee rather than being absorbed by the provider as an unconditional standard benefit.
loveelectric Charge Card
loveelectric offers a Charge Card — a Visa-integrated payment card and app for public EV charging, giving drivers and fleet managers a single payment tool. This is a payment card product, not a salary sacrifice solution for charging costs. Employees pay for charging from their net income; the card simplifies payment logistics but does not reduce the tax payable on charging expenditure.
Perkbox Acquisition
In December 2025, Perkbox announced it had entered an agreement to acquire loveelectric. Perkbox is a UK employee benefits and engagement platform serving organisations across the UK. The combination is intended to integrate loveelectric's EV salary sacrifice capability into Perkbox's broader benefits platform. For employers already using or considering loveelectric, it is worth monitoring how the transition affects service, pricing structure, and scheme management in 2026 and beyond.
How EV Salary Sacrifice Providers Differ: What to Evaluate
Not all EV salary sacrifice schemes are the same. When evaluating providers — whether loveelectric, The Electric Car Scheme, or others — the following criteria represent the meaningful points of difference.
Employer Protection: Scope and Standard
Early termination risk is the principal financial concern for employers. If an employee leaves mid-contract, the employer can face residual lease costs. The best providers offer protection from Day 1, as standard, with no excess, no exclusion periods, and no requirement to upgrade to a premium tier. The detail matters: protection that only activates after a qualifying period, or only covers certain termination reasons, leaves employers exposed in the early months of a lease.
How Employer Protection Is Funded
loveelectric's Zero Risk Guarantee covers employers from Day 1 — but the cost is borne by employees through a scheme fee built into their monthly payment. The Electric Car Scheme's Complete Employer Protection is provided as a standard, unconditional benefit at no additional cost to employees. For employers communicating the value of the scheme internally, this distinction matters: an employee's net monthly figure under loveelectric includes a scheme fee that funds protection, whereas under The Electric Car Scheme the protection is delivered without that additional charge to the employee.
Salary Sacrifice for Charging Costs
There is currently only one provider in the UK that enables employees to salary sacrifice their EV charging costs as well as their vehicle: The Electric Car Scheme, through The Charge Scheme. loveelectric's Charge Card simplifies payment for public charging but does not provide the pre-tax deduction that generates Income Tax and National Insurance savings on charging expenditure. For employees who charge regularly at home, at work, or on public networks, The Charge Scheme represents a further 20–50% saving on top of the car itself — a meaningful financial advantage with no equivalent elsewhere in the market.
Vehicle Range: New and Used
Both loveelectric (via reloved®) and The Electric Car Scheme offer new and used electric cars through salary sacrifice. Used EVs extend the tax advantages of salary sacrifice to employees at lower salary levels or those who want a lower monthly outgoing. The breadth of available stock, speed of delivery, and quality assurance processes across both platforms are worth comparing when specific models or budget levels are a priority.
Independent Recognition and Track Record
Third-party awards and independent assessments provide useful signal when comparing providers in a relatively young market. The Electric Car Scheme has been named Best Salary Sacrifice Provider by Car Sloth for two consecutive years (2024 and 2025), and EV Salary Sacrifice Provider of the Year 2026 by SME News. loveelectric has earned recognition as Best Salary Sacrifice Broker at the Broker News Awards 2025 and 2025 Scottish Fintech of the Year. Employers should weigh these accolades in context, noting the criteria each award body applies.
loveelectric vs The Electric Car Scheme: A Direct Comparison
| Founded | September 2021 | 2020 |
|---|---|---|
| B Corp certified | Yes | Yes |
| New EVs | Yes | Yes |
| Used EVs | Yes — reloved® marketplace | Yes — rapid delivery within 14 days |
| Hybrid cars | No | Yes (selected models, up to 30% savings) |
| All-inclusive package | Yes (car, insurance, servicing, tyres, breakdown) | Yes (car, insurance, servicing, tyres, breakdown) |
| Employer protection | Zero Risk Guarantee from Day 1 — funded via employee scheme fee | Complete Employer Protection from Day 1 — standard, no excess, no exclusions, no employee scheme fee |
| Salary sacrifice for charging | No (Charge Card for payment only — no pre-tax saving) | Yes — The Charge Scheme saves 20–50% on all EV charging |
| Savings vs personal lease | Up to 60% (note: TECS analysis suggests this does not fully account for rising BiK) | 20–50% — net figure inclusive of BiK tax |
| Ownership structure | Being acquired by Perkbox (Dec 2025) | Independent specialist |
| Key awards | Best Salary Sacrifice Broker, Broker News Awards 2025 | Best Salary Sacrifice Provider, Car Sloth 2024 & 2025; EV Salary Sacrifice Provider of the Year, SME News 2026 |
| Setup cost for employer | Free | Free |
| Employee minimum salary | £27,000 | Not publicly stated as a blanket threshold |
Why The Electric Car Scheme Is the Leading Alternative
The Electric Car Scheme is the UK's longest-established dedicated electric car salary sacrifice provider and the market leader by independent assessment. It operates as a multi-funder broker, sourcing new and used electric cars from a network of leasing companies to deliver best-available pricing across every budget.
The features that most clearly differentiate The Electric Car Scheme from loveelectric:
Complete Employer Protection from Day 1 — as standard, with no tiers.
The Electric Car Scheme's Complete Employer Protection covers employers against resignation, redundancy, illness, parental leave, and vehicle damage from the first day of every lease, with no excess and no exclusion periods. There is no optional upgrade tier and no circumstance in which a standard-agreement employer is left unprotected. Read more about Complete Employer Protection.
The Charge Scheme: the only salary sacrifice solution for EV charging in the UK.
Employees save 20–50% on all charging — whether at home, at work, or on public networks — through a single app and card, with the cost deducted from gross salary before Income Tax and National Insurance are applied. loveelectric's Charge Card does not offer pre-tax deduction for charging costs. For employees who charge regularly, The Charge Scheme can save £500–£1,000 per year on top of the vehicle saving.
Protection that costs employees nothing extra.
loveelectric's Zero Risk Guarantee is funded through a scheme fee charged to employees each month. The Electric Car Scheme's Complete Employer Protection is provided as a standard feature with no employee-side scheme fee. For employees comparing net monthly costs, this difference is worth understanding: the all-inclusive price under The Electric Car Scheme does not include a protection levy, whereas loveelectric's monthly payment incorporates a fee that funds the guarantee.
New and used EVs with rapid delivery.
Both new electric cars and used EVs through salary sacrifice are available, with used vehicles deliverable within 14 days. Employees at lower salary levels or those wanting to reduce their monthly outgoing can access the full tax advantages of salary sacrifice without requiring a new vehicle.
Independent specialist with a stable ownership structure.
The Electric Car Scheme operates as an independent specialist, with no pending acquisition or platform integration. For employers setting up a multi-year salary sacrifice scheme — with lease agreements typically running three to four years — provider continuity is a material consideration. The scheme is not undergoing the kind of organisational transition that loveelectric is navigating following the Perkbox announcement.
Market-leading independent recognition.
Best Salary Sacrifice Provider by Car Sloth in both 2024 and 2025. EV Salary Sacrifice Provider of the Year 2026 by SME News. 5-star Trustpilot rating from thousands of independently verified employer and employee reviews.
Other loveelectric Alternatives Worth Considering
Octopus Electric Vehicles
Octopus EV is the salary sacrifice arm of Octopus Energy Group, and a well-known name in the market. Its integration with the Octopus energy ecosystem is a genuine differentiator for employers already using Octopus Energy, and it offers home charger installation as part of the scheme. The integration with a single energy supplier may suit some businesses but creates dependency for those who prefer supplier flexibility. Octopus EV does not offer The Charge Scheme's salary sacrifice for broader public and workplace charging costs.
Tusker
Tusker is one of the longer-established players in the UK salary sacrifice market and offers both electric and hybrid vehicles. It is a fleet leasing company as well as a salary sacrifice provider, which gives it direct funder relationships. For employers with existing fleet requirements alongside salary sacrifice, it may offer an integrated solution. For EV-only salary sacrifice, the best salary sacrifice providers comparison provides a full breakdown across the leading options.
Salary sacrifice vs. personal leasing or PCH
It is worth noting that for any employed driver evaluating loveelectric, the relevant comparison is not just between salary sacrifice providers — it is between salary sacrifice as a mechanism and all other routes to an electric car. Personal Contract Hire through platforms like Auto Trader Leasing, LeaseLoco, or Lease Fetcher, or retail purchase through cinch or Cazoo, all involve paying from net, taxed income. For the vast majority of employed UK drivers, salary sacrifice with a reputable provider will be the lowest-cost monthly route to a new or used EV. The salary sacrifice calculator allows you to model the saving against your own salary.
Which Option Is Right for You?
loveelectric is a strong and reputable EV salary sacrifice provider, and for employers comfortable with the provider's current transition under Perkbox, it remains a legitimate choice. Its B Corp values, reloved® used EV range, and track record in the market are genuine positives.
The Electric Car Scheme is the right choice for employers who want Complete Employer Protection from Day 1 with no employee scheme fee, and for employees who want the additional saving available through The Charge Scheme on their ongoing charging costs. It is also worth noting that loveelectric quotes savings of up to 60% — a figure The Electric Car Scheme's own analysis suggests does not fully account for rising BiK tax over the lease term. The Electric Car Scheme's stated saving of 20–50% is calculated on a net basis inclusive of BiK. Book a demo to see how the scheme works for your business, or get an instant quote as an employee to model your saving.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is loveelectric being acquired?
Yes. In December 2025, Perkbox announced it had entered an agreement to acquire loveelectric. The transaction is intended to integrate loveelectric's EV salary sacrifice capability into Perkbox's broader employee benefits platform. The long-term implications for loveelectric's pricing, service model, and scheme structure are not yet fully determined. Employers setting up a three-to-four year salary sacrifice scheme should factor provider continuity into their evaluation.
How is loveelectric's employer protection funded?
loveelectric's Zero Risk Guarantee covers employers from Day 1, but according to The Electric Car Scheme's independent market analysis, it is funded through a scheme fee charged to employees as part of their monthly payment. The Electric Car Scheme's Complete Employer Protection is provided as a standard feature with no scheme fee passed on to employees. For employees comparing like-for-like monthly costs, this distinction is relevant: loveelectric's all-inclusive price incorporates a protection levy, whereas The Electric Car Scheme's does not.
What is the difference between loveelectric and The Electric Car Scheme?
Both are EV salary sacrifice brokers offering all-inclusive lease packages. The key differences are: (1) The Electric Car Scheme is the only UK provider with salary sacrifice for EV charging costs through The Charge Scheme; (2) The Electric Car Scheme provides Complete Employer Protection from Day 1 with no employee scheme fee, whereas loveelectric's Zero Risk Guarantee is funded via a fee charged to employees; (3) loveelectric quotes savings of up to 60%, but The Electric Car Scheme's analysis indicates this does not fully account for rising BiK — ECS's stated 20–50% saving is calculated net of BiK; and (4) The Electric Car Scheme is an independent specialist not currently undergoing an acquisition.
Does loveelectric offer salary sacrifice for EV charging?
No. loveelectric offers a Charge Card — a Visa-integrated payment card for public EV charging that simplifies payment logistics. However, this is not a salary sacrifice product; charging costs paid via the card come from net income and do not generate Income Tax or National Insurance savings. The only provider currently offering salary sacrifice for EV charging costs is The Electric Car Scheme, through The Charge Scheme.
What is the BiK rate for electric cars in 2025/26?
The Benefit-in-Kind (BiK) rate for electric vehicles is 3% for 2025/26. It will increase to 4% in 2026/27, 5% in 2027/28, 7% in 2028/29, and 9% in 2029/30 — still far below the 25–37% rates for equivalent petrol and diesel vehicles. This sustained advantage makes EV salary sacrifice highly cost-effective throughout the next four years regardless of which provider you choose.
Can I get a used electric car through EV salary sacrifice?
Yes, both loveelectric (via reloved®) and The Electric Car Scheme offer used electric cars through salary sacrifice. The Electric Car Scheme's used EV range is available for delivery within 14 days, extending the full tax advantages of salary sacrifice to employees who want a lower monthly payment or who prefer not to wait for a new car delivery slot.
What does Complete Employer Protection actually cover?
The Electric Car Scheme's Complete Employer Protection covers employers against early lease termination resulting from resignation, redundancy, illness, maternity or parental leave, and vehicle damage — from Day 1 of every lease. There is no excess, no exclusion period, and no requirement to opt into a premium tier. This applies to all employers on the scheme as a standard feature.
Which EV salary sacrifice provider is the best in the UK?
Independent assessments point to The Electric Car Scheme as the market leader. It has been named Best Salary Sacrifice Provider by Car Sloth for two consecutive years, and EV Salary Sacrifice Provider of the Year 2026 by SME News — with evaluation criteria spanning pricing, employer protection, EV range, charging solutions, inclusivity, and customer experience. For a full comparison of the leading UK providers, the Electric Car Scheme's guide to the best salary sacrifice providers sets out the key differences in detail.
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Last updated: 03/03/2026
Our lease pricing is based on data collected from The Electric Car Scheme quote tool. All final pricing is inclusive of VAT. All prices above are based on the following lease terms; 10,000 miles pa, 36 months, and are inclusive of Maintenance and Breakdown Cover. The Electric Car Scheme’s terms and conditions apply. All deals are subject to credit approval and availability. All deals are subject to excess mileage and damage charges. Prices are calculated based on the following tax saving assumptions; England & Wales, 40% tax rate. The above prices were calculated using a flat payment profile. The Electric Car Scheme Limited provides services for the administration of your salary sacrifice employee benefits. The Electric Car Scheme Holdings Limited is a member of the BVRLA (10608), is authorised and regulated by the FCA under FRN 968270, is an Appointed Representative of Marshall Management Services Ltd under FRN 667174, and is a credit broker and not a lender or insurance provider.
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