Electric mobility in Germany is at a turning point. With millions of electric vehicles on the roads and a steadily growing charging infrastructure, the market is rapidly evolving from early adopters to the mass market. But with this development, expectations are also rising: charging must work at any time – simply, reliably, and without frustration.

The reality, however, tells a different story. Despite high technical availability, everyday problems with initiating or completing charging sessions continue to occur. Classic metrics such as uptime fall short: they measure whether a charging station is theoretically operational – but not whether a charging session can actually be completed successfully from the user’s perspective.

This is precisely where the Charging Success Rate (CSR) comes in. It examines the entire charging process from the user’s point of view and makes visible where and why charging sessions fail. Initial analyses and extensive field tests clearly show that the actual success rate is significantly below the availability figures that are commonly reported.

The whitepaper, developed in collaboration with the National Centre for Charging Infrastructure, examines the gap between technical availability and real-world user experience, and explains how a standardized, user-centric metric can sustainably transform the industry.