When is an EV charger an emergency?
An EV charger that is sparking, smoking, or repeatedly tripping is a safety issue, not a wait-until-Monday problem. Our 24/7 live phone answering dispatches a crew with a target 2-hour on-site response for safety-critical calls. The $200 dispatch fee is applied to any authorized repair. If you smell burning or see damage, shut off the circuit and call us.
The clearest signals are physical. A discoloured or melted connector housing. Heat you can feel through the plug. A burning smell around the charger or the panel. Visible damage to the cable, especially where it has been driven over or caught in a door. Any of those means heat where there should not be heat, and heat in a 48A continuous circuit is how fires start.
The other signal is behavioural: a breaker that trips repeatedly and will not stay reset. That is the protection doing exactly its job. Resetting it over and over is the wrong response.
What to do before we arrive
Switch the EV charger circuit off at the main panel. That is the single most important step, and it stops the risk immediately.
Only unplug the vehicle if the connector is safe to touch. If it is hot, discoloured, or you can smell burning, leave it alone once the circuit is dead. Keep people and pets away from the charger. Do not attempt to reset a breaker that has already tripped more than once.
We walk you through all of this on the call before we dispatch, because the ten minutes it takes us to get moving matters less than the circuit being isolated right now.
Common problems we solve
- Overheating connectors and scorched pins from a degraded connection under continuous load.
- Repeated GFCI or breaker trips that will not reset.
- Water ingress into outdoor units and receptacles after a storm or a freeze-thaw cycle.
- Physical damage to cables and enclosures, including vehicle strikes.
- Post-storm faults where a surge has taken out the charger’s electronics.
How does the dispatch work?
You call, a person answers, and we establish two things: whether anyone is at risk, and whether the circuit is off. Then we dispatch a crew with a target 2-hour on-site arrival anywhere across Toronto and the GTA.
On site, the first job is assessment and isolation, not selling. We identify the fault, make the installation safe, and only then discuss what the repair involves and what it costs. Straightforward faults, meaning breakers, terminations, connectors, and most circuit issues, are usually fixed on the same call.
Where a part has to be ordered, we leave the installation safe and isolated, quote the return visit in writing, and book it. Where the unit is still within its manufacturer parts warranty, typically 3 to 5 years depending on brand, we file the claim rather than charging you for a covered component.
What does it cost, and what are the limits?
The dispatch fee is $200 CAD, and it is applied to any repair you authorize. Repairs typically run $250 to $800 CAD depending on the fault. Everything is quoted before work starts, even at 2am.
Two honest caveats. The 2-hour response is a target, not a guarantee. Ontario weather, snow, and traffic are real, and we would rather give you an accurate ETA on the call than an optimistic one that leaves you waiting. And where the emergency reveals that new permitted work is required, such as an electrical panel upgrade behind a chronically overloaded circuit, that follows the normal ESA permit and inspection process rather than being rushed through.
Outside genuine emergencies, our standard hours are Monday to Saturday, 7am to 8pm, and a scheduled EV charger repair visit at $150 CAD diagnostic is the cheaper route for a charger that simply will not start a session.
When an EV charger fault is a safety emergency
Not every EV charger issue is an emergency, but four specific symptoms mean stop charging immediately and call for authorized service before the vehicle is plugged in again.
Burning smell at the charger head, at the cable, at the wall enclosure, or at the panel. Electrical burning smell is thermal decomposition of insulation, which comes from resistance heating at a loose connection or a compromised conductor. It progresses to smoke, then to arcing, then to fire. Disconnect the vehicle, open the main breaker feeding the EV circuit, and call for dispatch.
Sparking at plug-in, at the connector, or from the wall enclosure. Any visible arc during a normal connection sequence is a fault. Do not attempt to charge through it. Open the breaker and dispatch.
Tripped main disconnect (not just the EV branch breaker). If the main disconnect on the panel trips when the vehicle plugs in or during a charge session, that indicates either a very large ground fault, a compromised main breaker, or a downstream short circuit. Do not re-close the main disconnect until an electrician has isolated the fault.
Overheating connector where the connector head or cable jacket feels hot to the touch during or immediately after charging. Compare against normal warmth (skin-comfortable). Hot to the touch indicates increased resistance and imminent connector failure. Disconnect, open the breaker, and dispatch. Do not re-plug the same connector head; replace before continuing.
For any of these symptoms our 24/7 dispatch responds with a target on-site window within 2 hours during business hours and the next available slot for overnight calls. We isolate the fault, secure the circuit, and schedule authorized repair within the following business day.
