Hi again Chub. As hoped, those with more knowledge have provided you with excellent advice. However, and here’s the big issue, does all of that sound damned complicated and a level of stress and anxiety that you don’t need, or maybe you would take all of that in your stride? Only you will know. Whilst gothitjulies replies were superb, I was completely lost even before the ‘now the complicated bit’ ? Without being an electrician or having an Applied Physics degree, I’m afraid that would all be enough to put me off completely (not the intention I appreciate)! Keep in mind that the equivalent explanation / instructions for a conventional car would be “stop at petrol station every 300-500 miles. Fill up car. Pay at pump. Drive off. Total time 3-4 minutes”!
I am not anti EV’s at all, but I think you have to have off road parking and charging, and mostly just do short journeys, for them to be practical. A hybrid of some sort definitely appeals to me as you get the best of both worlds – electric for short journeys but no range anxiety or charging worries.
Where I can offer more relevant advice is in regards to your condition in so far as it affects cars. I’m sorry to hear that you have MS. My wife has Secondary Progressive MS and is now a full time wheelchair user. She continued to drive for the first 15 years of her diagnosis, latterly with hand controls, but has now stopped driving. Even before she was using a wheelchair she would always ask me to refuel the car, as her balance was a worry. On that basis, I can see that charging a car at home could be advantageous to you. However, if balance and fatigue are issues for you, charging at external places will be no doubt be very challenging, especially if you need the loo in a hurry! I obviously have no idea how advanced your MS is, but the unfortunate reality is that you may get ‘episodes’ (if at the relapsing remitting stage) or a gradual deterioration, in which case my advice is to ‘think ahead’ and also, as they say when applying for PIP, ‘think how your condition affects you on a bad day’. So, in summary, IF you can get an off road charging solution (even if that’s just a lead and a conventional socket) and you only do short journeys, an EV may be great for you given your condition. If, however, you would be relying on third party charging I would probably steer more towards a plug in hybrid so that during bad periods you can resort to the petrol back up.
One final word of advice. Motability are very understanding about the fact that MS is a constantly changing condition and a car that is suitable for you now may become totally unsuitable for you at a later stage within the lease. If that happens, don’t hesitate to call them. They were excellent when my wife’s legs started to weaken and let us order a new car mid lease so that she could have hand controls. Hope that all helps. Good luck.