GeniePoint

I needed a charge and found a genie point. It had a card reader on the front and the contactless symbol so I tried my card but it kept prompting me to authenticate by phone. It didn’t clarify if that meant by calling, app or card on my phone. I eventually downloaded the app after admitting defeat. I genuinely hate using apps and this app is the reason why. The app itself is huge, needlessly so and always indicative of lazy developers. Once I’d downloaded it and filled in my details, email (twice), mobile number, home address, card details, card address, car. None of which auto populated. I then needed to create an account and authenticate the email. Unfortunately the immensely secure Apple password suggested wasn’t good enough and so even then I had to create a separate one just for genie. By the time this process was done I’d have been charged and back in my way with any other provider. But no, the app then didn’t work so I needed to call genie point for them to reset the charger which took another 5 minutes. I feel like I could have developed a process and an app by mistake that was more efficient than this. Genuinely dreadful.

I downloaded this app because you need it to use their chargers. Once you plug their charger in then there is no way to release it if you don’t use some sort of RFID card, which why on earth would you have if you have already a phone app to do everything. Then you press in the app to stop the charge but it doesn’t work, it doesn’t work! So it keeps on charging and costing you money that you don’t want to spend, this is same as scam! You have to call their support service which is keeping you on hold forever for them to stop the charging station and allow to release the charger. You can release it by pressing an emergency button they have on the charging station, but it messes up everything and they have a notice not to do or they will fine you. Awful incredibly awful. Avoid at all costs!

I’m a newcomer to Geniepoint. It is the first company I have used to charge my car other than doing so at home. I have tried 4 times to use their chargers. The first three times were very frustrating as the app did not work and the power cable would not come out of my car unless I phoned the Geniepoint number. I could not pay using my debit card either so I could not get a charge at all. I decided to get an RFID card through Geniepoint. When I came to paying for the charge on the fourth occasion it worked out ok by holding the RFID card against a sensor to start the charge and once more to end the charging process. The app was just a blank white screen and the charger only provided 7kW instead of the 22kW it is capable of. I also needed to use my car key fob to free the cable at the car end by pressing the lock button followed by the unlock button. The plug has to be withdrawn within 15 seconds after the cable is unlocked otherwise it will be locked in again! I am using a Kia e-Niro by the way. The sooner these chargers are all changed to allow us to pay with our debit cards the better.