Alastair Shephard

Content Writer

Alastair Shephard | Author

While 2015 saw the average British household spend just under £800 over the festive season, recent studies suggest 2016 could prove even more costly. According to research carried out by the Centre for Retail Research, UK Christmas spending is expected to hit a record £77.56bn, almost double the European average.

During a time of Christmas budgeting, we're all under pressure to funnel our money into the festivities and delay any non-urgent financial outlays in order to free-up some seasonal spending funds. Unfortunately, these 'non-urgent expenditures often extend to winter servicing and car repairs. Deterred not least by the prospect of the upfront payments these require, there is often a temptation for motorists to underplay the importance of car checks and maintenance; a decision which could have severe implications for road safety. (Indeed, the Christmas period tends to coincide with a peak in road accidents!)

Aware of the tendency for motorists to delay car servicing and repairs during the Christmas period, many dealerships choose the option of giving discounts to entice customers. Although a good idea in theory, in practice this is far from ideal. Not only does this eat into a dealership's profits, it does very little to resolve the problem of motorists having to pay out a lump sum upfront at a time when funds are destined to be spent on the highstreet.

As an alternative, interest free payment plans offer a much more practical solution, one which, crucially, has the potential to benefit both the motorist and the dealership. For drivers, payment plans offer the flexibility to 'fix now, pay later'. Payment dates can be arranged according to personal preference, meaning that instalments can be scheduled for after the festive rush. Motorists are given peace of mind that their vehicle is in safe working order and financial outlay is fully controlled. Dealerships on the other hand can charge full price for a service/ repairs with no reduction in profit, while still demonstrating their duty of care to the customer.

How dealerships can help the Christmas budget dilemma

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

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

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.”

- Charles, visited Ford Durham and was offered Bumper

Service Advisor Of The Month: Nothing’s Too Much For The Hutch

Bumper are pleased to announce the service advisor of the month award for September goes to Harry Taylor and Fraya Brinkman at Thurlow Nunn Vauxhall.

In September the team helped over forty customers drive away safer and happier with essential repairs made on their vehicles.

Having joined Bumper back in August 2018 Fraya has made consistent use of interest free finance making it an integral part of the aftersales service she offers. Harry joined the Bumper network in August this year and since become a frequent user of the service improving customer satisfaction and customer retention.

Area manager for the south east, Sam Levy, said “What a great achievement for both Fraya and Harry along with one of our longest standing customers in Thurlow Nunn which continues to thrive using Bumper as a main customer conversion tool. Fraya and Harry have added great value to Bumper not only in helping customers but providing best practices to share with the wider Bumper user network. Great work guys!”

Well done Fraya, Harry and the team at Thurlow Nunn Vauxhall!

Service Advisor Of The Month: On The Brink of Success

We are pleased to announce our service advisor of the month award goes to Jane Bailey from Bristol Street Motors.

Jane has been a regular user of Bumper since August 2016 when she began to make interest free finance a part of her everyday sales process.

Jane and the team have recognised the value spreading payments over monthly instalments brings to consumers; allowing them to budget better for their monthly expenses.

Since joining Bumper Jane has gone on to help over 297 customers complete £142,000 worth of essential repairs made to their vehicles. Combined with the overall numbers for her site this team has helped 381 customers drive away happier and safer.

Service Advisor of the Month Award: Bails Never Fails

We are pleased to announce our service advisor of the month award for December 2019 goes to Alkan From Group1 Audi Chingford.

 in September 2019 Alkan has proved Bumper to be an excellent tool to add value for customers, allowing them to budget monthly for essential repairs to their vehicles.

To date Alkan has helped hundreds of customers drive away with their payments split into affordable monthly payments.

Well done to Alkan and the team at Audi Chingford!

CHA-CHING!-ford: The Chingford Service Advisor Helping Customers Budget Better With Bumper

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