Alastair Shephard

Content Writer

Alastair Shephard | Author

The cost of living crisis has prompted nearly half of consumers to reconsider the way they approach vehicle maintenance and servicing.

Forty-eight per cent of the 4,269 car owners polled for the forthcoming Bumper Automotive Aftersales Report 2024/25 said they have adjusted their habits due to increased financial pressures.

The majority (90%) plan to keep their cars longer, reflecting a shift towards more cost-conscious decision-making.

Over half (51%) said they were exploring independent garages for more affordable servicing, while more than a third (38%) are choosing not to authorise advisory repairs, prioritising essential over non-urgent work. 

A significant minority (15%) reported skipping vehicle servicing because of costs. 

“The findings reveal a largely proactive approach to vehicle maintenance. However, the cost of living crisis has prompted shifts in consumer behaviour, with a significant portion of car owners looking for more affordable options, delaying non-essential repairs and using financial assistance to spread their servicing costs,” said James Jackson, Co-Founder and CEO of Bumper.

“Trust, cost and quality remain central to consumer decision-making, benefitting dealers nimble enough to adapt their aftersales propositions to the changing needs of their customers,” said Jackson.

The full Bumper UK Automotive Aftersales Report 2024/25 will be published shortly.

Cost of living crisis prompts nearly half of consumers to reconsider how they get their cars serviced

Drivers have been warned against using a new car accessory made famous by social media.

The device, which became popular on the video-sharing site TikTok, could see motorists hit with a big fine of up to £1,000.

Shaped like a hand, the device can be changed to make gestures to other road users through the rear window – and can even give other motorists the middle finger!

Experts have now stressed how the lights could obstruct the rearview mirror and therefore breach the Highway Code.

They warned the tool could be distracting for other drivers, prompting road rage and increasing the risk of a collision.

Failing to comply with the rules could see motorists slapped with a hefty £1,000 fine and three points on their licence. Those driving larger passenger and goods vehicles could be forced to pay a higher fine of £2,500.

The new sign, which can be picked up for as little as £2 on TikTok, isn't the only LED-lighting mistake facing road users. 

Common LED car strip lights are also likely to breach The Road Vehicles Lighting Regulations (1989), which banned lights displaying a red glow at the front or back of a vehicle.

Popular "social media" accessory that could land drivers a £1,000 fine

We're please to announce Bumper has secured a £2 million investment from 

This is the first investment from London-based Salica and follows funding earlier this year from Suzuki Global Investments and Marubeni Ventures.

The additional funding comes at an important time for the business as it marks the millionth customer using its digital payment platform and its first acquisition, with the recent purchase of AutoBI, the provider of business intelligence tools for car retailers. 

Bumper has also been recognised as one of the fastest growing European startups in 2024 in the newly published 

James Jackson, Co-Founder and CEO, said: “Attracting high-profile investors of the calibre of Salicia Investments vindicates our approach to delivering a seamless digital payments platform for dealers in the UK and across Europe. 

“This year Bumper will facilitate £300m worth of car repairs, with one million customers having now used our services to fund over £0.7bn worth of aftersales bills. Salicia’s investment will empower us to achieve the ambitious growth plans we have set for 2025.”

Jemma Bruton, Managing Director of Salica Investments, said: “We are delighted to support Bumper, a highly successful fintech which is transforming the way car repairs are paid for through its pioneering digital solutions. This investment underscores our confidence in the business, its leadership and its growth potential.”

Bumper secures £2m funding from Salica Investments

Bumper obtiene 2 millones de libras de Salica Investments

Bumper has been listed in the Sifted 250 — an annual list of the top 250 European startups with the highest percentage revenue growth over the past three financial years.

Backed by the Financial Times, the list consists of companies that are headquartered in Europe, founded in or after 2014, and have a revenue of at least €500k in the most recent financial year.

Together, the 250 startups on the list employ over 25,000 people across Europe, have generated revenues of over €6.8 billion, and raised over €70 million in capital.

Bumper ranked 50th in fintech and 216th overall, with 70 employees, a latest revenue of €13.9m and a compound annual growth rate of 96.87%.

Also included in the list is Buy Now Pay Later provider, Zilch. Digital bank, Allica, topped the list.

Earlier this year Bumper was included in the Financial Times list of fastest-growing top 1000 companies in Europe — a list of companies with the highest annual growth rate in revenue over the period 2019 and 2022.

Bumper Listed in Sifted 250: Europe's Fastest Growing Startups

Bumper aparece en Sifted 250: Las startups europeas de más rápido crecimiento

Bumper has completed its first acquisition with the purchase of AutoBI, the specialist provider of 

The Telford-based business was founded in 2019 and its web-based AutoBI dashboard

provide near real-time updates on critical information about all aspects of an automotive business including CRM, sales, service, parts and finance.

The acquisition will enable Bumper to enhance its digital payments platform with increased insights for its dealer partners.

All staff will transfer with the business and founder Jonathan Sharman will continue as its CEO.

of Bumper said: “AutoBI is a perfect fit for Bumper and this acquisition is a key part of our strategic goal to become Europe’s largest automotive payment and data platform. 

“AutoBI’s ability to generate thousands of near real-time reports will enable us to provide our dealer partners with greater visibility of data and insights across their businesses, helping boost their profitability, efficiencies and cost savings.”

“We’re delighted to welcome the AutoBI team to the business. This is our first acquisition and we will review further opportunities as they arise.”

Jonathan Sharman of AutoBI said: “The AutoBI team 

excited to become part of Bumper and support its growth in the UK and Europe as the leading finance platform for car retailers.

“The synergies between the businesses will enable us to seamlessly add further value to Bumper’s dealer proposition.”

Bumper makes first acquisition with AutoBI purchase

Bumper realiza su primera adquisición con la compra de AutoBI

Bumper und AutoBI: Ein neuer Standard für Business Intelligence

 birthday with an anniversary dinner held at Red Bull Racing’s Technology Centre.

Bumper started in 2014 as Auto Service Finance providing Buy Now Pay Later for car repairs and now operates in multiple locations across the UK, Spain, Germany, and Netherlands with a tech centre in Ankara, Turkey. 

Bumper now provides Europe’s leading dealership groups with a complete digital payment platform to cover any payment need.

The anniversary dinner brought together key partners, investors and Bumper staff to celebrate 10 years of automotive payment success.

Held at Red Bull Racing’s Technology Centre, the evening saw talks from Red Bull Powertrain’s Owen Carless, with insight into working as part of a top Formula One team, 

and Co-Founders, James Jackson and Jack Allman, about the history of the company and thanking early supporters, partner groups, investors, and employees.

Team Bumper would like to thank everybody who attended the evening for making it a night to remember.

Bumper celebrates 10th birthday with anniversary dinner 

Bumper has expanded its operations with the appointment of three new senior positions to support its ambitious growth plans in the UK and Europe. 

Alfie Sansom joins as finance director overseeing financial operations, credit and treasury management, tax structuring and capital allocation. He was previously head of finance at Conducktor and has worked at senior levels at PwC, Grant Thornton and Sky.

Jonathan Westwood has been appointed as Bumper’s head of legal and compliance. A general counsel with experience of international commercial contracts with Siemens and Experian, he joins from the Mortgage Advice Bureau where he was head of legal. He will spearhead Bumper’s risk, legal and compliance function 

as the company progresses towards regulated status.

Shreenidhi Subramanian joins as Bumper’s senior product manager. She has a background in fintech and will help scale and grow the business’ product portfolio.

Bumper is ranked at 281 in the FT1000 list of the fastest-growing companies in Europe and is the 49

 fastest-growing UK business across all sectors.

Headcount has grown significantly over recent years with 71 staff across t

he UK, Ireland, Spain, Germany and Netherlands and a further 16 in Turkey at the company’s dedicated 

Commenting on the appointments James Jackson, Bumper’s co-founder and CEO said: “We’re delighted to welcome Alfie, Jonathan and Shreenidhi to the team; all three bring a wealth of specialist and leadership experience to the business and we wish them every success in their new roles.

“As Bumper enters the next stage of its growth, which will see the number of repairs we help dealers to facilitate double this year to 500,000, we have created these new senior positions to support our expansion.”

Bumper announces new additions to management team as it accelerates growth plans

Bumper anuncia nuevas incorporaciones al equipo directivo

Millennials are the most likely car owners to use buy now, pay later (BNPL) services to cover their car repair, servicing and MoT bills.

The Millennial demographic typically covers people born between 1981-1996.

Research by Bumper, the automotive fintech payment specialist, has identified 43 as the average age of customers using BNPL, with these owners choosing to spread their costs rather than pay upfront or use credit cards.

This overall average was consistent across franchised dealers but dipped to 38 for independent workshops.

However, older Generation X owners (born between 1965-1980) are likely to use BNPL for more expensive bills. The study found 47 was the average age of buyers using deferred payments for bills costing £2,000-£4,000; 

The UK and Ireland have the youngest average users in Europe (43), followed by Spain (45), Germany (46) and the Netherlands (47). 

“When it comes to settling workshop bills, budget-conscious millennials have identified the benefits of spreading their outgoings with BNPL, rather than racking up credit card debt,” said James Jackson, CEO and co-founder of Bumper. 

“Car owners born in the early 1980s will typically be at a life stage where they have monthly mortgage or rent payments and have a young family; so choosing to spread their motoring costs, interest-free over several months, makes perfect sense. 

“Our research also shows BNPL is not restricted to Millennials as older Gen X owners are

likely to use it to cover more expensive bills,” he said. 

This year Bumper forecasts it will help car owners to fund over £460m worth of car repairs. 

Millennials most likely age group to spread car repair costs with buy now, pay later (BNPL)

Millennials: La Generación que Prefiere Reparar su Coche con "Compra Ahora, Paga Después" (BNPL)

Millennials streuen die Kosten für Autoreparaturen am ehesten mit "buy now, pay later" (BNPL)

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