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Bolt Kenya has been instructed to pay 1,000,008,000 Kenyan shillings ($662,743) to one of its drivers, Kennedy Wainaina Mbugua, by Friday, November 3. The driver took legal action against the e-hailing company, alleging various infringements against him and violations of the Transportation Network Companies (TNC), Owners, Drivers, and Passengers Regulations of 2022.
As revealed in case documents obtained by Technext, the driver accused Bolt Kenya of violating his data privacy and subjecting him to harassment by deactivating his account on the platform, which left him unable to work and earn a living for 168 days.
Furthermore, Bolt was accused of failing to comply with relevant transport network regulations.
In a judgment delivered by Kenya’s Transport Licensing Appeals Board, the entity responsible for adjudicating disputes related to the country’s transportation regulations, Bolt was ordered to compensate Mr. Wainaina with 1,008,000 Kenyan shillings for the 168 days he couldn’t work, from May 15, 2023, to October 31, 2023, at a rate of 6,000 Kenyan shillings per day.
Bolt was also instructed to reinstate Mr. Wainaina’s deactivated account and refund the balance in his wallet when the account was disabled.
Lastly, Bolt Kenya was mandated to provide evidence of compliance with the requirement to establish an office in Kenya before November 3, which is a prerequisite for operating in the country. Failure to comply with these orders could result in the suspension or cancellation of Bolt’s operating license.
It’s worth noting that Bolt Kenya recently had its license renewed following negotiations that led to the cancellation of a 5% booking fee imposed on passengers.
Kennedy Wainaina filed a complaint with the Appeals Board, alleging that Bolt breached his data privacy on its platform, exposing him to potential fraud and other security threats. However, instead of addressing his concerns, the company chose to deactivate his account, withholding all the funds it contained, leaving him without a source of income for 168 days.
Furthermore, he accused Bolt of failing to operate a physical office in Nakuru County, where he is based, and in the rest of the country, which he believed was in violation of the 2022 National Transport and Safety Authority (Transport Network Companies, Owners, Drivers, and Passengers) Regulations.
The Transport Licensing Appeals Board found that its efforts to obtain information from Bolt Kenya regarding the existence of a physical office and its response to Mr. Wainaina’s claims had been unproductive. The judgment emphasized that the driver’s allegations largely remained unchallenged.
The Board determined that Bolt acted capriciously and with impunity when deactivating the driver’s account without following the necessary procedures and the principles of natural justice.
Additionally, the Board ruled that Bolt Kenya was operating in violation of the law by not maintaining a physical office in Kenya, despite having established an African Headquarters in the country in 2022. According to the regulations, this African Headquarters does not qualify as a Bolt office for Kenya.
Failure to comply with these orders and regulations could lead to the suspension or cancellation of Bolt Kenya’s operating license.
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