Now in it’s 19th year, the FStech awards celebrate innovative and outstanding technologies in the UK and EMEA financial services sector.

Bumper is pleased to announce that we have been shortlisted for the Best Use of Social Networks or Gamification category. The nomination is a result of the implementation of our service advisor dashboard; an area for users in which they can earn points and prizes for helping customers to pay their repair bills.

We are competing against two other start-ups. Invstr, an app for aspiring investors and Yu Life a mindfulness and wellbeing app. Also in the running, is investment bank JP. Morgan.

Bumper CEO, James Jackson, said, “it’s an honour to be shortlisted at the FStech award and is testament to the team’s hard work and dedication in continuing to improve our product’s user experience”.

The awards ceremony will be held at London’s Marriott Hotel, Grosvenor Square on 21st March and hosted by Kerry Godliman, comedian and star of Ricky Gervais’ sitcom Derek.

Bumper Shortlisted for Best Use of Gamification at FStech Awards

The team had their record month for Bumper sales, which produced an outstanding month for their internal targets. Not only did they manage to increase their conversion of VHC work and average retail invoice value, Ford Bromley also had much happier customers in January, with the team hitting their monthly CVP target.

Bumper Director, Jack Allman, said, “Bristol Street Ford Bromley are seeing the benefits of proactively introducing their customers to Bumper at every touch point; at the booking stage, when the vehicle is dropped off and finally during the duty of care call. Having Bumper fully embedded into the aftersales process has resulted in great metrics and will promote long-term loyal customers”.

Sarah visited the team for a vehicle health check and said, “Very good service. Courteous staff and very helpful.” Another customer visited and said, “Excellent service and really helps to keep your car in perfect condition with the option to spread the cost over 3-6 months which can really help if you end up needing more work than expected”.

Service Advisor of the month: Be More Bromley

Well done to Steve and the team on a stellar month for helping their customers afford repair bills with Bumper.

Steve joined the Bumper network in January this year and since then has enabled numerous happy customers to spread their repair costs interest free. He and the team at Vertu Mercedes-Benz Reading had a record-breaking month in February, growing their Bumper sales by a huge 400%!

Bumper CEO, Jack Allman, said, “Vertu Mercedes-Benz Reading have recognised the value of offering Bumper to customers to enhance the premium experience created in their dealership. As well as helping convert work, the team recognise how Bumper improves the customer experience which drives customer retention and satisfaction”.

This increased customer-satisfaction is reflected in their recent five-star Trustpilot reviews. Simon visited the site and commented on the “very good service” he received during his vehicle health check.

Congratulations Steve and the team on your top performance!

Service Advisor of the Month: Reading in the Right Direction

Trustpilot, an independent review portal with over 56 million reviews, allows customers to share their honest experiences with companies by leaving a small comment and a 1-5 star rating.

Since March 2018 we have been asking customers to leave us feedback on using Bumper to pay for service bills and the results have been extremely positive. We are currently the 20th best rated company in the non-bank finance category and hold a Trust-score of 4.9 out of 5.

Trust-scores are based not only on how many stars we have been awarded by customers but the age of reviews, with a greater emphasis on the newest. This ensures we are rated on the standard of service we currently provide.

With 1,102 reviews, there are a lot of positive comments to be proud of. Here are a few of our favourites:

“Found this service very helpful, when I was faced with a big repair bill for my car. You had a choice of 3 months payments, no deposit or 5 months with a deposit, all interest free and you could choose a date of your choice to repay them in instalments. It was very easy to set up and gave me peace of mind. Would definitely recommend this company.”

- Stephanie, after her visit to Motorline Hyundai Canterbury

“Interest free payment option for car repairs. I forgot my card when visiting the dealership and I set the payment on my payday. You don't feel the pressure you normally have around your car service.”

- A customer who visited Go Vauxhall Wimbledon

“Had immediate response without lengthy discussions or reams of form filling. Been given this option, I was able to spread the cost of vehicle repairs interest free”

- Mrs Bird, after her visit to Bristol Street Hyundai Mansfield

Thank you to our customers who have taken the time to leave us a review over the last year!

1000 Happy Customers: Surpassing One Thousand Reviews on Trustpilot

Held at London’s Marriott hotel in Grosvenor square the awards recognise excellence and innovation in the field of information technology within the UK and EMEA financial services sector.

The award is in recognition of Bumper's innovative suite of dealership reports and dashboards, using the latest gamification and machine learning techniques.

The evening was hosted by comedian Kerry Godliman and saw Bumper beat investment giant J.P. Morgan.

Other winners included Barclays for Best Use of Mobile, Allied Irish Bank for Integration Project of the Year and HSBC for Risk Management Software of the Year.

CEO, James Jackson, said, “I am proud of the work we have done towards this award. The win demonstrates the teams hard work towards improving the experience for our users”.

Bumper Win at the FStech Awards 2019

Beverley’s hard work and commitment to providing her customers the best possible experience includes Bumper as an integral part of the aftersales process.

Joining Bumper in 2016 Beverley has helped nearly one hundred customers split their repair bills and drive away happier and safer. Twenty of these customers were in March alone with six of them completed in one day.

Beverley and the team’s excellent customer service is reflected in their Trustpilot reviews. Duncan visited the site last March and explained that Beverley was an “excellent member of staff who was knowledgeable and very helpful”. On David’s visit he said that Bumper “was easy to set up with help from the Honda service facilitator”.

Vertu customer Nicola said, “Beverley who I dealt with at Vertu Honda Lincoln was brilliant, the whole experience from start to finish was excellent. This finance took a weight off my shoulders when faced with a higher than expected repair bill, it meant I could have the repairs done, my car was safe and I could get to work. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this product or Vertu Honda Lincoln!”

Well done to Beverley and the team over at Vertu Honda Lincoln!

Service Advisor of the month: Get The Bevs In

We are pleased to announce that we won Alternative Lender of the Year in the New Lender category at Credit Strategy’s Credit Awards 2019!

This year’s awards celebrated the 20th year the event has been held. The evening was hosted by comedian Jimmy Carr at Grosvenor House Hotel, London on the 16th May and saw winners such as Capita, Vodafone, Barclays and HSBC walk away with awards.

The winners were selected by a panel of judges who look to reward companies for their “hard work, innovative outlook and industry-shaping solutions”. Amongst the panel were specialists in the credit industry from Santander, Lloyds and Metro bank.

The award recognizes the growing popularity of the pay monthly option within the aftersales industry and how Bumper is leading the way with an exceptional product and service for OEM-franchises; independent garages and, ultimately, the customer.

James Jackson, CEO of Bumper stated, “A fantastic win for Bumper at an event as prestigious as the Credit Awards, particularly given how many great FinTech businesses there are in the UK right now. This award recognizes the work we do to empower car dealerships up and down the UK. We are proud to work with nearly 2,000 dealerships with the goal of becoming Europe’s largest aftersales finance provider over the next few years.”

This is Bumper’s second award this year and, hopefully, there are many more to come!

Credit Where Credit’s Due: A Win For ASF At The Credit Awards 2019

Bumper are pleased to announce the service advisor of the month award for May goes to Sarah from Bristol Street Ford in Durham!

Sarah has consistently stayed atop the leader board over the last few months and has helped over 160 customers drive away happier and safer since joining Bumper in July last year.

Along with service manager, Wayne; advisors, Reece and Alex; Sarah is changing Ford Durham’s approach to aftersales by proactively offering a more flexible solution to customers. This has resulted in a higher number of drivers having essential work completed on their vehicles.

The site’s many happy customers have taken to Trustpilot to review the site.

“Easy experience, very helpful lady at the garage”

- Keith, visited Ford Durham and was offered Bumper

“Good MOT and service, was quick and effective, work done under warranty wherever possible. Customer service was excellent. I would definitely recommend”

“I did not know about this service with Bumper but I think it is a great addition to my Ford connection. I have owned Ford vehicles for many years, and this is an excellent add-on service of good value. I would definitely recommend it to any potential clients who wish to budget their servicing costs.”

Alastair Shephard

Content Writer