National · EV charging
Can I install an EV charger in a rental property, and what can my landlord require?
Direct answer
California, Illinois, Colorado, and Oregon protect qualifying tenant EV-charger installations, subject to different parking, equipment, approval, and cost conditions. A lease clause is not the final answer where a statute limits it. Identify the law for your state and the exact parking space before applying or paying for work.
This guide covers tenants and landlords of residential rental housing — apartments, rental houses, and multifamily buildings with parking leased to the tenant — and touches briefly on commercial tenants in California.
Before applying, confirm rights for HOA or condominium owners (covered by different statutes, noted only where a renter in an association is affected).
This guide does not cover co-ops.
This guide does not address landlord-utility billing disputes.
It does not replace the local building, electrical, or permit requirements that apply to every installation.
What the rule says
California, Illinois, Colorado, and Oregon protect qualifying tenant EV-charger installations, subject to different parking, equipment, approval, and cost conditions. A lease clause is not the final answer where a statute limits it. Identify the law for your state and the exact parking space before applying or paying for work.
California Civil Code section 1947.6 is the residential rental rule. For any lease
executed, extended, or renewed on or after July 1, 2015, a lessor of a dwelling
shall approve a lessee's written request to install an electric vehicle charging
station at a parking space allotted to the lessee, if the request meets the section's
requirements and complies with the lessor's procedural approval process for property
modifications. That is a mandate to approve, not a permission to consider. But the
statute comes with exclusions: it does not apply where charging stations already
exist for lessees in a ratio of at least 10 percent of designated parking spaces;
where parking is not provided as part of the lease; where there are fewer than five
parking spaces; or, for leases before January 1, 2019, where the dwelling is subject
to residential rent control.
Illinois took a different drafting route. Section 35 of the Electric Vehicle Charging
Act (765 ILCS 1085, effective January 1, 2024) provides that, notwithstanding any
provision in the lease to the contrary, a tenant may install, at the tenant's expense
for the tenant's own use, a Level 1 receptacle or outlet, a Level 2 receptacle or
outlet, or a Level 2 charging system on or in the leased premises. The tenant right
is subject to the landlord's conditions described below.
Which authority controls
State statute sets the floor; the lease and the landlord's written approval set the
details inside that floor. In California the controlling text is Civil Code section
1947.6 (residential) and section 1952.7 (commercial leases). In Illinois it is 765
ILCS 1085, which the legislature framed as covering tenants, landlords, and associations
of both new and existing single-family homes and multifamily residential buildings
that have parking spaces (section 10(b)). The U.S. Department of Energy's Alternative
Fuels Data Center maintains discovery summaries of both laws, but those records are
references, not the controlling authority.
California: what the landlord may require
Under Civil Code section 1947.6(g), your written request must include consent to
a written agreement covering: compliance with the landlord's requirements for installation,
use, maintenance, and removal of the station and its infrastructure; a complete
financial analysis and scope of work; a written description of how, when, and where
the work will occur; an obligation to pay the landlord all costs of the landlord's
installation of the station and infrastructure before any work begins (including
permits, supervision, construction, and performance bonds if the contractor requires
them); and an obligation to pay, as part of rent, the electrical usage costs plus
costs of damage, maintenance, repair, removal, and replacement.
The insurance rule is specific: the lessee and each successor lessee must maintain
personal liability coverage, as described in Insurance Code section 108, in an amount
not to exceed 10 times the annual rent, covering property damage and personal injury
caused by the installation or operation of the station, from installation until
removal or forfeiture of possession (section 1947.6(h)). Critically, no insurance
may be required if the station is certified by a Nationally Recognized Testing Laboratory
approved by OSHA and the station and any electrical alterations are performed by
a licensed electrician (section 1947.6(i)).
What the statute does not do: the landlord is not obligated to provide an additional
parking space for the station (1947.6(d)), but may charge a monthly amount for the
space if the station effectively creates a reserved parking space (1947.6(e)). The
station and all modifications must comply with federal, state, and local law, zoning,
land use requirements, and covenants, conditions, and restrictions (1947.6(f)).
California separately covers commercial tenants: under Civil Code section 1952.7,
a lease term executed, renewed, or extended on or after January 1, 2015, that prohibits
or unreasonably restricts installation or use of a charging station in a parking
space associated with the commercial property is void and unenforceable, unless
the property already has stations at a ratio of at least 2 per 100 spaces or has
fewer than 50 parking spaces; approval may not be willfully avoided or delayed and
must be in writing.
Illinois: the renter pattern
Section 35 of 765 ILCS 1085 protects the tenant from lease clauses and from most
fees. The landlord may not assess or charge any fee for the placement or use of
a charging system, except: reimbursement for the actual cost of electricity the
landlord provided; a reasonable access fee (including a network fee if the system
is on a fee-charging network); a security deposit to restore the property if the
tenant removes the system; reimbursement for installation costs, including wiring
upgrades, if the landlord placed the system at the tenant's request; and a reasonable
fee to reserve a specific parking space in an area accessible to other tenants (section
35(a)(2)).
The landlord may require compliance with bona fide safety requirements consistent
with an applicable building code or recognized safety standard, registration of
the system with the landlord within 30 days of installation, and reasonable aesthetic
provisions governing dimensions, placement, or external appearance (section 35(b)).
In exchange for consent, the tenant must agree in writing to comply with the landlord's
design specifications, engage a duly licensed and registered electrical contractor,
and provide, within 14 days of consent, a certificate of insurance naming the landlord
as an additional insured on the tenant's renter's insurance — or, at the landlord's
option, reimburse the actual cost of any increased premium within 14 days of invoice
(section 35(c)).
For systems on property accessible to other tenants, the tenant and each successive
tenant with exclusive rights to the area are responsible for damage costs, electricity
reimbursement based on submetering or a reasonable calculation (average miles driven,
EPA vehicle efficiency, and common-area electricity cost), insurance naming the
landlord as an additional insured, and removal when reasonably necessary for the
landlord's repairs (section 35(d)). A system installed at the tenant's cost is the
tenant's property; on lease termination the tenant may remove it or sell it to the
landlord or another tenant for an agreed price, though no one is required to buy
it (section 35(e)). A landlord who willfully violates the section is liable for
actual damages plus a civil penalty of up to $1,000, and a prevailing plaintiff in
an enforcement action may recover reasonable attorney's fees (sections 35(f)-(g)).
A tenant whose landlord is an owner in an association must obtain approval through
the landlord, under the association provisions of the Act (section 35(h)).
Colorado and Oregon tenant protections
Colorado. C.R.S. § 38-12-601 allows a tenant-funded Level 1 or Level 2 charging system in leased premises, assigned or deeded parking associated with them, or parking accessible to other tenants, despite a contrary lease provision. Safety, reasonable appearance, and registration requirements remain. Shared parking brings written design, licensed-contractor, insurance, damage, and removal responsibilities. The statute permits specified electricity, access, installation-reimbursement, and parking-reservation charges; it does not make the landlord fund the installation.
Oregon. ORS 90.462 protects a compliant personal, noncommercial charger in or near parking assigned to the tenant or dwelling. A landlord may prohibit a compliant installation only when the premises lack at least one parking space per dwelling. A completed qualifying application must be approved within 60 days unless a reasonable request for information causes delay. Reasonable review charges, architectural requirements, licensed installation, electricity and damage costs, and specified infrastructure costs remain. The section excludes tenancies governed by ORS 90.505–90.850; its insurance requirement depends on the equipment’s certification and configuration.
Multifamily common areas and shared parking
Both states treat parking as the anchor of the tenant right: California protects
a station at "a parking space allotted for the lessee," and Illinois protects charging
"on or in the leased premises" with special rules for areas accessible to other
tenants. Where the charger must sit in shared or common-area parking, expect the
reservation fee, damage, insurance, and removal rules above to apply, and expect
the landlord to require a specific assigned space.
Owners in condominiums and HOAs are governed separately: California Civil Code section
4745 voids covenants that effectively prohibit or unreasonably restrict charging
stations within an owner's unit or designated parking space and requires association
approval applications to be processed like architectural modifications, with a written
decision and deemed approval if not denied in writing within 60 days. Illinois section
30 of the same Act mirrors that structure for unit owners, including a $500 civil
penalty for willful association violations. A renter in an association building is
not an "owner" under those sections — Illinois expressly routes the tenant through
the landlord (section 35(h)), and in California association rules are likely to be
enforced through the landlord's approval process as well.
What may still be required or restricted
Statutory approval never replaces the separate requirements that apply to the installation
itself: local building and electrical permits, compliance with the electrical code
(California defines the station by reference to Article 625 of the California Electrical
Code), panel or service capacity review, utility requirements, and any zoning or
land-use approvals. The landlord may also require the tenant to restore the property
if the system is removed, and California permits the landlord to require payment
of installation costs before work begins. For other states, identify the applicable rental and charging laws before deciding what the landlord may require. The examples here do not establish that another state lacks protection.
Facts that could change the answer
Whether a right exists depends on: the state; whether the lease was executed, extended,
or renewed after the statute's effective date (California: July 1, 2015; Illinois:
January 1, 2024); whether parking is included in the lease and how many parking spaces
the property has; whether charging stations already serve the property; whether
rent control applies (California, for older leases only); whether the station is
in the tenant's allotted space or in an area shared with other tenants; and whether
the property is a rental building or a common interest development. Each of these
facts can flip the result.
Practical decision path
- Read the lease's parking, alteration, and approval clauses.
- Check your state's statute — California Civil Code sections 1947.6 and 1952.7,
or Illinois 765 ILCS 1085 section 35 — and confirm its effective-date and exclusion
tests. - Submit a written request that includes the financial analysis, scope of work,
and installation description, and consent to the written agreement the statute
contemplates. - Ask for the landlord's conditions in writing — insurance, contractor, registration,
fees, and removal terms. - Confirm building, electrical, and utility requirements separately from landlord
approval. - Keep everything, including the certificate of insurance and reimbursement receipts.
Records to keep
Keep the lease; your written request and the landlord's written approval or denial;
the signed agreement on installation, use, maintenance, removal, and cost sharing;
the certificate of insurance naming the landlord as an additional insured and any
premium-reimbursement invoices; electricity or fee records; and, separately, permits,
contractor documents, and utility approvals. In Illinois, keep proof of the 30-day
registration if one was required.
When professional advice may help
A landlord's refusal, a lease clause that contradicts a statute, a dispute over
electricity billing or insurance, or an installation that touches shared or common-area
parking are all situations where a landlord-tenant attorney familiar with your state's
statutes is worth consulting before you spend money or sign anything.
Before work begins, obtain the written requirement from the association, landlord, permit office, or serving utility and keep the record.
Prepare an approval request
Official sources
Frequently asked questions
Can my landlord simply say no to an EV charger?
California, Illinois, Colorado, and Oregon protect qualifying tenant EV-charger installations, subject to different parking, equipment, approval, and cost conditions. A lease clause is not the final answer where a statute limits it. Identify the law for your state and the exact parking space before applying or paying for work.
Does the tenant have to pay for the charger and the electricity?
Usually yes. California Civil Code section 1947.6 requires the tenant to pay for electrical usage as part of rent and for damage, maintenance, repair, removal, and replacement costs, and permits the landlord to require payment of installation costs before work begins. Illinois section 35 allows the landlord to require reimbursement for the actual cost of electricity the landlord provides, a reasonable access or network fee, a security deposit for removal restoration, and reimbursement for wiring upgrades when the landlord installed the system at the tenant's request.
What insurance can the landlord require?
In California, the landlord may require personal liability coverage not exceeding 10 times the annual rent (Civil Code section 1947.6(h)) — but no insurance may be required if the station is certified by a Nationally Recognized Testing Laboratory approved by OSHA and the station and electrical work are done by a licensed electrician (section 1947.6(i)). In Illinois, the tenant must provide a certificate of insurance naming the landlord as an additional insured within 14 days of consent, or reimburse the actual cost of any increased premium within 14 days of the landlord's invoice (765 ILCS 1085/35(c)(2)(C)).