EV Charger Install Pre-Check Form for Electricians

"How much to put in a car charger?" is one of the most common calls a residential electrician gets, and one of the hardest to quote by phone. The answer can be a short circuit run from a 200-amp panel with open spaces, or it can be a service upgrade that the utility has to schedule weeks out. You don't know which until someone looks at the panel, and every look is a truck roll.

A short pre-check form won't tell you the answer. It tells you which leads to visit first, which ones need a longer conversation, and which ones you should warn about a possible upgrade before you drive out. Below are the questions we get most about it, answered from building and mock-testing our EV charger panel pre-check form recipe.

Is a pre-check form a load calculation?

No, and it shouldn't pretend to be. The National Electrical Code treats EV charging as a continuous load, and NEC Article 625 covers most of what applies to charging equipment, according to the Department of Energy's Alternative Fuels Data Center. The same page says electricians are the ones who can tell homeowners whether a home has enough capacity, and that some homes don't. Whether a charger fits is decided by a licensed electrician using the code your jurisdiction has adopted, on site, with the actual panel in front of them.

What the form does is collect the facts a homeowner can usually see for themselves, and sort leads by written rules your electrician reviews. Every message the form sends says it's a pre-screen and that a licensed electrician confirms on site.

What should the form ask?

Keep it to what a homeowner can answer in a couple of minutes, with an "I don't know" option wherever they might not know. Our form asks:

Main breaker size. The number printed on the big breaker at the top of the panel, from 60 to 400 amps, or "I don't know".
Empty spaces in the panel. None, 1 or 2, 3 or more, or "I don't know".
Large electric loads already in the home. Electric furnace or baseboard heat, heat pump, central AC, electric range, electric dryer, electric water heater, hot tub or pool pump.
Distance from the panel to where the car parks. Under 20 feet, 20 to 50 feet, more than 50 feet, or not sure.
ZIP code and state, so you know whose utility and which city's permit rules apply.
Contact details, and a separate, unchecked box for agreeing to texts. Consent isn't required to get a quote.

How do leads get sorted?

Into three tiers, by written rules, not a formula that pretends to be exact:

Tier A, "likely fits without a panel upgrade": for example, 200-amp service with three or more open spaces and only a couple of large loads.
Tier B, "needs a closer look": anything in between, and any lead with "I don't know" answers. The homeowner is told why.
Tier C, "likely needs a panel or service upgrade, or a load-management device": for example, 100-amp service with electric heat, an electric dryer and an electric water heater.

The thresholds are deliberately conservative, and they're in plain text so you can change them. Have your licensed electrician review them before you go live. Tier C isn't "no": a load-management device or an upgrade may solve it, which is exactly the conversation to have before the visit rather than in the driveway.

Why tell a homeowner about a possible upgrade so early?

Because the utility may need weeks. PPL Electric, a Pennsylvania utility, asks for a minimum of 12 weeks' notice before a 100-amp to 200-amp service upgrade, with customer requirements due 6 weeks before the work date and the electrical inspection 2 weeks before (PPL Electric, checked October 31, 2026). Other utilities differ, but a Tier C homeowner who hears that on day one is much easier to work with than one who hears it after the install date is booked. For quotes that do turn into upgrades, a panel upgrade quote follow-up keeps the conversation going.

What does the homeowner see?

A thank-you page, then an email with their tier in plain words and a line saying it's a pre-screen and a licensed electrician confirms on site. A text goes out only if they ticked the consent box and only between 8 a.m. and 9 p.m. in their time zone. Our texting consent page explains the rules we design around. The form never says "guaranteed" or "will pass inspection", and a built-in message check blocks those phrases, along with any tax-credit promise.

What lands in Jobber?

A new client and a request with every answer, plus an email to the office. If Jobber is busy and rejects the request, the homeowner still gets their email and the office email says "NOT in Jobber, add it by hand" with all the answers, so the lead isn't lost.

How does it keep out spam?

Four layers: a hidden honeypot field bots tend to fill, a signed form key that expires after 24 hours, a minimum time to fill in the form, and a 24-hour duplicate check by phone or email.

What did the mock test show?

All 16 scenarios passed on October 31, 2026, against mock versions of Jobber, Twilio and the email API. Among them:

200-amp service, 3+ open spaces, 2 large loads: Tier A, with a Jobber client and request, a homeowner email, a text (consent given) and an office email.
100-amp service with electric heat, dryer and water heater: Tier C, with the load-management option mentioned and no promises.
"I don't know" answers: Tier B, and the email said why.
Submitted at 10:30 p.m.: email right away, no text.
Honeypot filled, or submitted one second after the page loaded: the same thank-you page, and nothing saved or sent.
The same phone number again within 24 hours: "we already have your request", with no duplicate Jobber client.

What wasn't tested?

Everything ran against mocks, with invented homeowners. We haven't connected it to a live Jobber account, sent real texts or checked its tiers against real panels. Homeowners often don't know their breaker size, so many leads land in Tier B by design. Jobber says custom integrations are only possible for approved Jobber customers (Jobber Developer Center). More on our method in how we test.

When the visit turns up extra work: an electrical change order form you can send by text and the change-order sign-off recipe.
Permits and inspections for the install: track every rough-in and final without a whiteboard and the permit and inspection tracker recipe.
Night texts about burning smells: after-hours hazard text triage.
Quotes that go quiet: a 3-touch estimate follow-up.
Texting rules: is missed-call text-back legal?

All five recipes are on the electricians hub. If your shop pre-qualifies EV leads differently, tell us about it.

Sources

U.S. Department of Energy, Alternative Fuels Data Center, "Charging Electric Vehicles at Home": EV charging is a continuous load under the NEC; Article 625; electricians determine capacity; permits and site plans may be required. Checked October 31, 2026. afdc.energy.gov
PPL Electric Utilities, "Timeline for Service Requests": 100-amp to 200-amp service upgrade, minimum 12 weeks' notice. Checked October 31, 2026. pplelectric.com
Jobber Developer Center, Custom Integrations. Checked October 31, 2026. developer.getjobber.com
Test results: our EV charger panel pre-check form recipe, 16 of 16 scenarios passed against mocks on October 31, 2026.

EV charger installs: a pre-check form that sorts leads before you roll a truck