Court Upholds Ban on Safaricom’s Bonga Points Expiry Date

The High Court in Nairobi has declined to lift its order barring Safaricom from enforcing Bonga points expiry date or restricting their redemption for non-merchandise purposes.

The ruling stems from a case filed by Dr. Magare Gikenyi against Safaricom, the Communications Authority of Kenya, and the Attorney General. The Consumers Federation of Kenya (Cofek) and the Law Society of Kenya (LSK) were listed as interested parties.

In October 2022, Safaricom announced that Bonga points its customer loyalty rewards would start expiring.

However, on November 22, 2024, Justice Chacha Mwita declared the move illegal, unconstitutional, and null and void, affirming that once earned, Bonga points become the customer’s property.

Justice Mwita ruled that introducing expiry dates could potentially violate Article 2(4) of the Constitution and rejected Safaricom’s request to suspend his decision pending an appeal.

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On April 9, 2025, Safaricom renewed its push for a stay, arguing that customers could deplete points older than three years, rendering any appeal outcome futile.

Through an affidavit by Cerere Kihoro, the company claimed it had an arguable appeal and that any redeemed points could be recovered if the appeal failed.

Safaricom also argued that the court lacked jurisdiction based on the doctrine of exhaustion and cited delays in filing the stay application due to a change in legal counsel and the time taken to obtain typed court records.

Dr. Gikenyi opposed the application, arguing Safaricom had delayed without justifiable cause and would not suffer significant loss.

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He emphasized that during earlier proceedings, Safaricom had suggested it had dropped the expiry policy, only to later reverse that position.

He further argued that any losses Safaricom might incur could be recouped from customers if the appeal succeeded.