Polar Instant

This app is a great disappointment. It's slow to connect, doesn't clearly explain charges upfront and to use the service you have to pay EVERY TIME a one-off fee, that is of course if you don't have the monthly subscription. So I just threw out of the window another 1.20£ cause the connection was rubbish (and I had full 4G coverage!) And I had to restart the app 10 times. This is the price you pay to be environmentalist, and it's frankly quite high being 2019!

While the app is improved from previous versions it is still too unreliable to count on. On average it works about half the time I try to use it. When it fails I have to call the Polar help line to start the charge remotely. However the last time it failed, Polar decided to stop answering their telephones, and I had to limp home. Not good enough Polar!

Been experiencing some breaking issues with the app recently not communicating to the post and locking my cable in when I need to leave, while I'm sat constantly stabbing away at the 'stop charging' button on screen. It was happy to connect 4hrs ago to charge. Still sat here 10mins later Annoyingly, they won't issue a fob either, unless you're on the subscription plan rather than the Pay As You Go, so I'm stuck with this, probably go back to diesel... Update; BP's network controls seem to completely fail, meaning when I called, they couldn't even unlock it remotely - their entire system was down; working across two phones, could not report the problem. Only found this out when I called them and they had lost the ability to control the post and release the socket at their end also - so I'm stuck here until they sort it out...

Been using this for a week or so now. Very rarely any connection between app and charge station. Terminals with contactless operate independently of the app anyway. Having attempted to start two charges in-app it's now completely jammed and I get "unable to cancel charge" messages. Screenshots also pointlessly disabled probably so you can't report error messages. Not like this is a banking app.

Just doesn't work. I've tried to charge on 2 occasions now to be greeted by the spinning wheel of doom times. There doesn't appear to be a way of exiting this nightmare either, tried to cancel but that's a no go. Even tried rebooting my phone but as soon as I opened the app I was greeted by the spinning wheel of doom again. Ended up paying the higher rate using contactless in the end. Guessing that's their plan. I now have credit on my account that I can't use 😡

Unfortunately I have only rated Polar Instant with 1 star. Short version is that it doesn't work properly on my phone (Samsung S7, Android 7.0) or my wife's phone. Have uninstalled and reinstalled, from Play Store and from Polar Instant Website. Have had to call the helpline for every single charge. I also think it's unacceptable to require the app to start and stop charging. Consumer's mobile devices are inherently unreliable and people are going to end up getting stranded.

Pretty useless. I've had £20 on my account for about 2 years that I've never been able to use through the app but I have been successful using anonymous contactless payment. At least if the app allowed you to filter the map such that find charging stations that took contactless rather than randomly driving from one charge point to another just to find another machine that does not work with the app it would provide a useful mapping functionality rather than just a one dimensional broken payment app.

Dreadful app and service. The Polar BP network is useless. Loaded £20 credit, and failed to charge at 3 separate posts in two different towns. After the first 2 posts, I tried to get through to customer services - gave up after 10 minutes. Emailed same day, and still no response ten days later. Tried to charge again today, as usual would not connect, app freezes, but my charge cable would not disconnect from the post. Took 25 minutes for someone to answer the phone to get it disconnected.

I can see that my original review appears to have vanished! What can be said about ths... Well you have to deposit £20 before you find out that you cannot use it because the app crashes, locks up, or plain just exits when you try to use it. Then you find out that you cannot get your mney back - but of course funny old thing they are happy to transfer your remaining credit to their subscription service! Apparently they are switching app and website over to the BP Chargemaster app which is new and improved and apparently they have listened.. Well take a look at the reviews for that app yourself and see that nothing has changed!!! Seems to be a way of just closing out accounts in credit without offering refunds... Although I note that in their email advising of the "exciting news" there is a tiny lsmallprint link to call customer services for a refund. I have done just that but after several years of trying I am not holding my breath - the new app smells as much as SCAM as the old - I am certainly not going to be transferring over with those reviews!

I've not been able to use this app for ages, latest problem is it says connection lost retry and keeps cycling through that. This is supposed to be for people to charge, it needs to work regularly the issue has nothing to do with my connection, have tried on WiFi too. Wasted 15 minutes on phone to connect again. I don't want polar plus and you won't give an RFID for pillar instant, and can't start a charge through the browser, absolutely ridiculous

This app shouldn't even need to exist, but it does exist, and it's one of the worst designs possible for taking payment to charge a car. The charger sockets don't have bank card readers on them, so you are forced to have an account that you top up and then pay from this app. To use the chargers you NEED this app. If you don't have an internet connection then you can't start a charge. If you don't have an internet connection when you want to un-plug, then you can't unplug. Your cable is stuck in the charger. Maybe you can call the support line to unlock the car? Welllll, maybe your phone is dead, your cable is stuck. You'd think that telling the car to stop charging would make the charger unlock the cable? Nope! The cable stays stuck. Okay, so we have to use the app. Suppose you've not been unlucky today and your phone is working fine and has an internet connection, so you click on the button in the app to stop the charge, does it happen instantly? Nope! It takes about two minutes for it to actually disconnect you. UGH! Other things wrong with this app: it deliberately disables the android back button, meaning that dismissing the app needs to be done using other means. Why? Who knows. <- this one actually violates the android developer guidelines. Can you take screenshots of this app? Perhaps you want to get a record of your past charges? Maybe you want to submit an expenses claim for charging your car for business use and you need to screenshot the charge history page of the app as a record of the charge time and cost? Nope! The app prevents you from taking screenshots. THE APP PREVENTS YOU FROM TAKING SCREENSHOTS! Technology can be so much better than this. This is appalling.

This app is extremely unhelpful. I have tried repeatedly to start charging with it without success. It tells me to follow instructions on the screen but none appear. I have tried swiping my card again and then it told me I was making too many calls on the server and said Go home!

Very limited subset of Polar's charging network particularly in Birmingham. Did have an RFID card in the past but don't charge frequently enough to warrent paying a subscription. This app requires a £20 deposit upfront other apps are pay as you go. And it took three attempts to install a working version eventually used the link to play store from Polar's website.

Used once the car did charge but the app hung when I tried to finish the charge and wouldn't release the charging cable! Customer support unable to help I eventually located the panel containing the rcd switch and turned the charge point off and on again then it released. Not fun wasted lots of time. I was stuck there so long the car park wouldn't let me leave to compound the stress.

Useless app - as with other reviews, added credit, parked at charger, started charging session and now app hanging with 'follow instructions on post' but post is not showing anything. Can't cancel as whenever I try get a message 'you can no longer cancel charging session'. Been 25 minutes now and still can't get a charge - having to give up and loose the credit in the app. Absolutely rubbish.

Was put off by the bad rating, but have had no problems with the app. Had to call support (took too long to start charging as I had to move the car because of a short cable), got through fast and it was sorted in seconds.

I needed to use the App twice yesterday. On both occasions it hung without the station responding correctly. The first time the touch screen failed (Llandrindod Wells) and the second I need to use a bank card. On both occasions there is no way to exit the App. It is still waiting for me 13 hours later.

Deeply disappointing and unreliable app. Multiple times now, at different units, I've been unable to initiate charge using this app. Sometimes it helped to phone Polar and get them to restart the charger. Often, the app claims to start charging but never does. Meanwhile they have my pre-paid money on credit, so I will be writing to ask for a refund.

Still absolute rubbish. Every time I've gone to use it, it's failed. Doesn't find location of the charge point or won't connect to it. I have £10 credit with Polar that I simply can't use because of this totally useless app! I have found a simple solution - just avoid using Polar charge points.

Awful. Loaded £10 onto account to use. Attempted to connect at which point app went to 'follow instructions on the post. Waiting for you'. Nothing on post. 1.5h later I am at home and this is still the only thing the app states. Restating the app and Attempting to cancel states I can no longer cancel and goes back to waiting.

Utter rubbish, slow when it connects, that's if it connects. Points very rarely allow disconnection, spend more time onto customer services to fix issues that the app cant solve. How can Ecotricity make such a reliable app (chargers not so much) yet Polar backed by BP have something I could've created in an afternoon programming with my IT team.

Just tried using Polar for the first time in St Tudy. I should have listened to the majority of other reviewers. I have Polar Instant but the post wanted me to scan my RFID card. The app then 'told me' the car was charging but the car was flashing red at the plug and not charging. I tried rebooting twice, gave up and managed to release the cable from the car but not the post. I eventually got the lead free from the post and left quickly. Glad I own a hybrid and not an EV.

does not update previous polar instant app (v1.3 what happened to v2?), now have two separate apps thus had to enter name and password again. previous app no longer works unable to parse json.. Only found this v3 via link in email from polar. Rated as 2 star as looks better than older polar instant which rated as 1 star due to being virtually unusable. unsure if this works yet. I still have £16.40 of the original £20 to try from nearly 3 years! yet to find an ultra that works when I need it.

Avoid these stations at all costs! The only two times I've had to stop at one, both times had issues which required calling and wasting 1+ hours doing so. The second time even required having my car towed while parked at the charging station which left me not knowing if I should cry or laugh at the irony. An absolute joke.

Used twice and stuck in ' Connecting' twice so had to call. Also no way to remove credit cards only add. They worst of the charging apps I've used so far. Update. Dec 2019. Had to try and use again but with same result. Absolutely useless.

Garbage. I have a pixel 4 and this simply doesn't work. The app hangs up repeatedly. Clicking on the start charging button does nothing. Junk. Tried at two different polar stations this evening, neither works.

Have £10 on my account, However app is not compatible with phone so not able to make use if it, or charge the car which is surely the whole purpose Scrap his flippin'app. Shouldn't require a mobile phone to charge a car in any event. Far too many chances of failure.

Really poor implementation. Don't know if it's the chargers or app but 1st charger I tried wouldn't charge tried to cancel but the app hung and charging post stopped communicating and wouldn't release my cable even after calling support. Had to get someone to kill power to post. 2nd charger I tried the app said it was ready to charge but the post didn't know anything about it. I now can't use the app as it's still telling me to follow the instructions on the post 10 hours later. Can't cancel it.

This does not work for me (generic Android 7). With many charge points being in ANPR monitored car parks (time limited). I am reluctant as a new EV owner to pay for a RFID tag without trying the network first, so I have to remove Polar from my list. Update, tried to install on a Samsung S4 Mini , not compatible with that either.

Edited: working now (couldn't log in or reset password before) so will give benefit of the doubt. It has improved lately in terms of loading map etc. But seems the servers can be a bit unreliable going by other reviews.