It can be easy to think that modern safety systems and fuses are supposed to protect your electric car from damage in the event of a lightning strike.
In many charging boxes, charging cords, charging posts and fast chargers there is, for example, surge protection to protect against damage in the event of lightning.
However, there is a great risk that this protection will not be enough.
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Do not charge the electric car during thunderstorms
According to Tesla Club Swedenwhich refers to the book Get an electric car, the surge protection in modern chargers is only sufficient for remote lightning strikes.
This means that a lightning strike nearby can still damage the electric car’s charging electronics and batteries if the charging cable is connected.
The advice in case of lightning is therefore simple: Do not have the charging cable for your electric car plugged in.
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Can damage expensive equipment
According to Tesla Club Sweden, there is above all no adequate protection for the electric car if lightning were to strike right in one’s own house.
If it crashes some distance away, however, there is a chance that the overvoltage protection in the charging equipment protects the car. However, it is mentioned that this can lead to, for example, being forced to get a new charging cable for thousands of kroner.
It is also important to keep track of the type of surge protection that the charging box you have installed is equipped with – if it even has surge protection.
It is also noted that it is not always entirely clear where the blame lies for damages caused by a lightning strike, which means that guarantees or insurances do not always cover the damages.
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Do not use fast chargers during thunderstorms
The advice not to plug in the electric car during thunderstorms also extends to fast chargers, which can cause problems if you have to fast charge on a long journey in connection with a thunderstorm.
Fast chargers certainly usually have surge protection, but according to Tesla Club Sweden, the protection from these is not one hundred percent either. There are cases where lightning has struck near fast chargers and damaged cars charging there.
As a place of refuge in case of thunderstorms, however, it is pointed out that an electric car is excellent, just like any normal car.
Sitting in a car during a thunderstorm is safer than being outside, as the body conducts the lightning around the passenger compartment.
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