Technology-fuelled etiquette fails: from EV charging station bad manners to rude earbud habits

New technology means a whole new kind of pet peeve for modern drivers.

EV charging station etiquette is emerging as one of the top new “areas of frustrations” being voiced across Australia, social researcher Mark McCrindle says. Picture: Tim Pascoe

A spike in the number of people driving electric vehicles is fuelling a new type of road rage driven by bad etiquette at the charging station, according to a leading social analyst.

Research principal Mark McCrindle, who heads up national research firm McCrindle, says behaviour at EV charging stations has emerged as one of the top new “areas of frustrations” being voiced across Australia.

Other modern-day lapses in courtesy which are leaving people feeling miffed include not indicating when artificial intelligence has been used to create correspondence and people not removing earbuds when talking to someone.

Not confirming a text message has been received, leaving rubbish behind on a table in a food court or fast food restaurant and failing to wave when a driver lets you in are also pet peeves.

Mark McCrindle is a leading social analyst and principal researcher at McCrindle Research. File Picture

“EV charging station etiquette is an emerging issue,” Mr McCrindle said.

“The etiquette there is that as soon as the car is charged, you ought to remove the vehicle … people are saying to us there is an acceptable five-minute grace period from the time you get the alert (the car is fully charged) to when you need to move your vehicle.

“The other factor, particularly around holiday time, is when there is a queue at the EV charging station … people are saying, ‘just do a top up’; 20 minutes is a long time to wait if people go for a full charge.”

Mr McCrindle said one of the problems for the growing number of EV drivers – the Electric Vehicle Council estimates there are now about 130,000 EVs on Australian roads – was there weren’t hard and fast protocols to follow.

“This isn’t something we’ve needed etiquette around in the past … there is no etiquette book that explains it,” Mr McCrindle said.

“So, while for some it is basic common sense, others don’t realise it and that is where the frustration creeps in and issues arise. It creates negativity and judgement.”

Mr McCrindle said the same lack of clarity around rules of conduct applied in other spaces, too.

“The biggest cause of social tension flows from the use of technology,” he said.

Technology use has been linked to social tension. File picture

“(This is) mainly because people absorbed in their screens don’t notice the needs of others or the opportunities to be polite.”

The proper etiquette was to take out earbuds when speaking to someone, even if there wasn’t anything playing into the ear piece, he said.

“Removing your earbuds when someone starts a conversation shows you are actually paying attention … it displays respect,” he said.

Mr McCrindle said when people were surveyed in relation to AI etiquette, the overwhelming response was its use “has to be acknowledged”.