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Published July 15, 2026
CA Civil Code 1947.6 requires landlords approve most EV charger requests; the tenant covers the cost.
Under California Civil Code section 1947.6, a landlord generally must approve a tenant's written request to install an electric vehicle charging station at the tenant's assigned parking space, and the tenant pays for the equipment, installation, maintenance, removal, and the electricity it uses. A few property types are exempt, covered below.
Section 1947.6 applies to any lease executed, extended, or renewed on or after July 1, 2015. If a tenant with a dedicated parking space submits a written request to install a Level 2 EV charger, the landlord must approve it as long as the request meets the statute's requirements and follows the landlord's normal procedural process for property modifications. A landlord cannot simply refuse because they would rather not deal with it. The law does allow a landlord to require the installation meet reasonable specifications, including compliance with applicable building and safety codes, and to require a licensed contractor do the work.
There are limited grounds to deny or condition a request, generally tied to safety, structural feasibility, and whether the property has enough electrical capacity, but a blanket "no EV chargers" policy is not one of them for a covered lease.
Section 1947.6 has real exemptions, and they matter for smaller South Bay properties. It does not apply if parking is not part of the lease, if the property has fewer than five parking spaces, or if EV charging stations already exist for tenants at 10 percent or more of the designated parking spaces. Rent controlled properties were originally exempt too, but the Legislature removed that carve out for leases executed, extended, or renewed on or after January 1, 2019, so rent control is no longer a reason to refuse on a current lease. A single family home with a two car garage, for example, typically falls under the fewer than five spaces exemption, though many owners approve a well documented request anyway since a charger tends to add value.
The tenant bears the cost. That includes the charger and installation, which for a Level 2 unit commonly lands in the low thousands of dollars installed (prices vary by panel capacity and wiring distance, so get current quotes), plus ongoing electricity costs for charging and the cost of maintenance, repair, and removal. Some utilities and state programs offer rebates that can offset part of the installation cost, so it is worth pointing tenants toward their utility's EV rebate page rather than assuming the full cost falls on them. The landlord is not required to contribute to installation or equipment costs, and if the installation creates a new reserved parking space for the tenant, the statute lets the landlord charge a monthly rental amount for that space.
The original version of this framework required tenants to carry a $1,000,000 general liability policy for as long as the charger stayed installed, which was a real barrier for a lot of renters. Senate Bill 638, signed October 12, 2019 and effective January 1, 2020, replaced that blanket mandate with a two track rule. A landlord may now require the tenant to carry personal liability coverage of up to 10 times the annual rent for the unit, covering damage or injury caused by the installation or operation of the charger. But no insurance can be required at all if two conditions are both met: the charging station is certified by a Nationally Recognized Testing Laboratory (most major residential charger brands are), and a licensed electrician performs the installation and electrical work. In practice, requiring an NRTL listed unit and a licensed electrician is the cleanest path for both sides, since it satisfies the safety standard and takes the insurance question off the table.
The statute and typical lease practice put responsibility for removal, or for negotiating whether the charger stays as a fixture, on the parties at move out. If you want the charger removed and the parking space restored at lease end, or you want to keep it as a value add for the next tenant, get that spelled out in the addendum at install time rather than after the tenant has already left.
EV charger requests are becoming routine, and refusing one on a covered lease is not a legally sound option. Build a standard addendum that covers contractor licensing, code compliance, who owns the equipment, and what happens at move out, and use it every time so you are not negotiating each request from scratch. For an owner with dedicated parking, treating this as a routine modification request rather than a special case will save time.
If you would rather have a standard process ready to go before a tenant asks, that is the kind of groundwork we keep current for owners at Schofield.
This is general information, not legal or tax advice. Confirm with a licensed professional before you act.
Last verified: July 2026.
Topics: compliance, EV charger, Civil Code 1947.6, parking, leases, South Bay
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Schofield Properties is a family run property management company at 323 Richmond St, El Segundo, CA 90245. We have managed the South Bay since 1972 and personally oversee about 186 doors today. Book a call to talk about your property.
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