What is the NCC Verified Leisure Battery Scheme?

When buying a leisure battery, there are many things you need to consider – will it fit into your caravan or motorhome, how many charging cycles can it provide, or what is its capacity?

Another important factor is whether the battery is NCC approved or not. Chances are, you’ve seen NCC ratings mentioned before, and all leisure batteries sold by Halfords are NCC verified. But what does their verification mean and what are the different ratings? We have everything you need to know.

NCC verified batteries

When buying a new leisure battery, you want to know it’s going to provide reliable power – and that’s where the NCC verification scheme come in.

The NCC is an independent body that promotes best practise in the tourer, motorhome and caravan industry, helping to ensure that the industry delivers high-quality products.

That’s why they started the NCC Verified Leisure Battery Scheme. In this, leisure batteries undergo an industry-leading testing process and are provided with one of three ratings:

• Class A
• Class B
• Class C

NCC verification is therefore the easiest way to find a high-quality battery, and that’s why Halfords only sells NCC verified batteries. Any battery verified by the NCC should also be labelled accordingly so you can be sure you’re getting a product that’s been thoroughly tested – but what do the different NCC ratings mean?

NCC leisure battery ratings

The three ratings used by the NCC don’t reflect things such as reliability but instead focus on performance factors like capacity – if a battery was unsafe or unreliable under testing, it wouldn’t receive a rating!

Therefore, the ratings aren’t there to help distinguish a good battery from a bad one, but instead to determine which battery would be best for your needs.

Class A

Class A batteries are perfect for motorhomes or caravans that spend lots of time off grid. They have the highest storage capacity so can support your electrical appliances and equipment for longer before needing to be recharged. Class A batteries can also support motor movers, allowing you to manoeuvre your caravan remotely.

What appliances can Class A batteries support?

• Motor movers
• Televisions
• Heaters
• Microwaves
• Fridges
• Lights

Class B

Class B batteries are designed for caravans or motorhomes that spend most of their time hooked up to an electrical supply, but still require a greater battery capacity for certain appliances such as motor movers.

What appliances can Class B batteries support?

• High-demand appliances such as motor movers, but only for a short period before needing to be recharged
• Lights
• Televisions

Class C

Only designed to be used for short periods away from an electrical supply, Class C batteries have the lowest capacity and can only support basic appliances and equipment when not hooked up.

What appliances can Class C batteries support?

• Low-demand appliances such as lighting

Why do you need an NCC verified battery?

If you’re heading out in your caravan or motorhome, you don’t want your trip to be ruined by a flat battery!

Nowadays, we tend to take more technology with us on our journeys than ever before – most of which will need to be charged at some point. With such high demands on your leisure battery, making sure you get one that can support your needs is important.

By using the NCC rating, you can assess what level of battery you will need. So, if you know you won’t be spending much time hooked up to an electrical supply, a Class A battery is best.

However, for those who will spend almost all of their time on a campsite, a Class C battery will often be more than adequate.

Just as importantly, by buying an NCC verified leisure battery, you get that added confidence that the battery you’re buying is fit for the job and can be depended on – so you won’t need to worry about the lights in your motorhome or caravan going out unexpectedly!

That’s why, here at Halfords, we only sell NCC verified batteries - meaning you get that added peace of mind that you’re getting a battery you can rely on. You can explore our wide range of NCC verified leisure batteries from the best brands including Yuasa here.