Charging on the Go: Mastering Payment Methods at Electrify America Stations with Your Credit Card or App

I’m going on a long trip with my 2023 Volvo XC40 and wanted to test the high-speed charging capabilities of the Electrify America station.

I downloaded the app and set up an account. I also added Electrify America to my Apple Wallet. 

At the station, I plugged the high-speed adapter into the car outlet, then tapped my phone where the credit card reader it. No matter what I did, It would not recognize the phone, telling me that there was an error, and to try again. 

I tried a few times and then gave up. 

CREDIT CARD

I ended up swiping with a credit card, which activated the station and started charging. 

After I finished this first test, I ended the session and removed the charger. 

SECOND TRY

Then I plugged in the charger again to try to get the app to work.

Only then did I realize that I had to tap UNDER the credit card payment box against the charger where it says, "Members: tap here to pay with plan". That user interface needs a lot of improvement.

After I tapped there, the charging started once again. 

Without a plan, you have to pre-load at least $10 into your account. I did that. 

When I looked at my recent credit card transactions I saw a $50 charge from Electrify America. I had to search online to see why that happened and it is a temporary charge that verifies your credit card account that is supposed to go away once the charge from your charging session completes. I'll be watching that to make sure the $50 charge goes away. 

UPDATE: It looks like I was at an older charger with an old design. Here’s a photo of a newer charger. Makes more sense.

Using CHIP and PIN Credit Cards and ApplePay in Europe

In Europe credit cards use CHIP and PIN. In the US, most credit cards use CHIP only. No PIN. This article can show you which cards support both CHIP and PIN.

Credit Card Insider: Chip-and-PIN Credit Cards in the USA.

Since I have a CHIP only card, when I tried to use it in Amsterdam, I was required to show my license and give a signature. Lame.

When I was in Germany, at the checkout, I said I wanted to pay with a CARD, and then used my iPhone to pay with ApplePay. That worked 95% of the time and made payments seamless. I tied my ApplePay to a credit card without foreign transaction fees.

Note: When the vendor asks if you want to have them convert the transaction from EURO to US DOLLARS, say NO, because their foreign transaction fees will be high, and your credit card without foreign transaction fees will take care of it.