News

Kenya Power customers get a month to file billing complaints

kplc

Kenya Power customers queue to settle bills at Electricity House in Nairobi. PHOTO | FILE

Electricity consumers have one month to file with Kenya Power #ticker:KPLC any complaints arising from billing errors incurred since the beginning of the year.

Aggrieved customers will be spared disconnection during the period as part of an out- of- court settlement that the electricity distributor reached with Nairobi lawyer Apollo Mboya.

Mr Mboya had filed a suit on behalf of consumers, over inflated and backdated bills Kenya Power is accused of sending its customers since late last year.

“The 1st respondent (Kenya Power) agrees to allow its customers who may have issues relating to their bills following the migration to the Integrated Customer Management System (InCMS) system in Nairobi and its environs in September 2017 and countrywide rollout in November 2017 a period of 30 days from the date of the recording of the terms of this consent as an order of the court to raise their queries with it,” the agreement filed in court says.

The deal also saw Kenya Power commit to charging its customers strictly in accordance with the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) – approved tariffs. The electricity distributor will also pay Mr Mboya and the Electricity Consumers Society of Kenya any costs incurred in the suit.

The High Court yesterday adopted the consent bringing to a close one of Kenya’s very first Class Action suits, whose outcome was expected to signal how aggrieved groups would pursue their rights in the courts of law.

Mr Mboya in January moved to court and obtained orders stopping Kenya Power from backdating power bills to recover Sh10.1 billion.

In August, the lawyer filed a fresh application claiming that the Energy Regulatory Commission’s (ERC) July 30 new electricity tariff structure had increased the cost of electricity for domestic consumers in favour of minority bulk power consumers.

Mr Mboya argued that the new tariffs were meant to circumvent the January court orders restraining Kenya Power and the ERC from charging consumers inflated and backdated electricity bills to recover Sh10.1 billion.

The new tariffs came into effect on August 1 for prepaid users and July 1 for those on post-paid meters, effectively pushing up the cost of power for middle class households by up to 54 per cent.

Mr Mboya termed the new tariffs discriminatory and unconstitutional, noting that every person is equal before the law and has the right to equal protection, arguing that the State cannot discriminate against any person.

The new tariffs indicated that the first 10 units (Kwh) consumed by domestic customers would cost Sh12 per unit up from Sh2.5 charged before the changes, effectively pushing the charges for this category from Sh25 to Sh120.

For the next 40 units, Kenya power would charge Sh15.80 per unit, up from Sh2.5 previously charged, estimating that consumers would pay Sh632 instead of Sh100, a change of more than 600 per cent.