KENYA · TELECOMS · CONSUMERS
Kenya’s telecoms regulator says billing and charging, meaning disputes over what customers are billed, is the biggest source of complaints about mobile data and text messages. In figures released in early November 2026, the Communications Authority of Kenya (CA), the state body that licenses telecom operators, counted 479 complaints for July to September.
Safaricom, the operator that owns the M-Pesa mobile money service, and rival mobile operator Airtel Kenya both sell mobile data there. Readers weighing Safaricom’s half-year results or a trip to Kenya should know what the regulator found.
Key Facts
- Complaints The telecoms regulator, the Communications Authority of Kenya, received 479 complaints in July to September 2026.
- Resolved 422 complaints (88.1%) were resolved, and 57 are still being followed up by the regulator.
- Data Data services, including text messages, drew 140 complaints, 29.2% of the total; 44 were billing.
- Billing The 44 billing and charging complaints were 31.4% of data complaints, down from 75 in April to June.
What the Regulator Found
The CA counted 479 complaints that reached it after consumers failed to get a satisfactory answer from their provider. It reports that 422 of them, or 88.1%, were resolved, while 57 are still under active follow-up by the regulator.
Data services, including text messages, made up 140 complaints, or 29.2% of the total. Billing and charging of data services accounted for 44 of those, which is 31.4% of data complaints and 9.2% of all complaints.
The regulator says billing and charging disputes mainly concern bundles lost early. In April to June 2026 the CA counted 670 escalated complaints, 75 of them about data billing and charging.
In Plain English
Communications Authority of Kenya: the government regulator that licenses telecom operators and handles consumer complaints about them.
Data bundle: a prepaid allowance of mobile internet, sold for a set period.
Validity period: the number of days a bundle is meant to last.
Billing and charging complaint: a dispute over how much data was used or deducted, or what the customer was charged.
What the Complaints Describe
The CA says the billing complaints mainly concern the premature depletion or disconnection of data before the stated validity period ends. Put simply, a customer buys a bundle for a set number of days and finds it gone sooner.
The figures do not say why bundles run out early. They describe the complaint, not the cause.
The regulator says it plans to strengthen its oversight of operators on consumer rules. That means billing accuracy, tariff transparency, fair terms and conditions and adequate consumer information.
What Is Not Known
The CA’s published figures do not say which operator drew the complaints. Safaricom, the operator behind M-Pesa, and Airtel Kenya, its main rival, are two of the firms that sell mobile data in the country.
We found no comment from either company on the figures, so we do not link the complaints to either of them. The reason bundles run out early is also not given.
On 6 November 2024, a committee of the National Assembly, Kenya’s lower house of parliament, pressed the CA over expiring and unused data bundles. The CA’s director-general, David Mugonyi, was reported to have said the Kenya Information and Communications Act, the 1998 law that governs telecoms, lacks clear provisions requiring compensation during service disruptions.
What It Means for You
Travellers and expats buying data bundles for a Kenyan SIM card (the chip that gives a phone its number) can check the balance and the stated validity period with their provider. If a bundle disappears early, ask the provider for a credit first, because the CA handles escalated complaints only after the provider has been tried.
Our guide to a phone line and internet for foreigners in Kenya covers the practical steps. An earlier report on Safaricom refunds to M-Pesa customers is a separate matter from these figures.
For investors, the signal is planned tighter supervision of the operators the CA licenses. It is a consumer-protection push, not a finding against any named company.
That sits alongside how Kenya charges telecoms for spectrum, which is a separate regulatory cost. The next quarterly figures should show whether billing complaints ease as oversight tightens, and until then these numbers are a snapshot of one quarter, not a ranking of operators.
Sources: Communications Authority of Kenya, consumer complaints statistics for July to September 2026 and Consumer Complaints Report for April to June 2026 (ca.go.ke).
Frequently Asked Questions
What did the Communications Authority of Kenya report?
It said 479 complaints reached it in July to September 2026, and 422 (88.1%) were resolved. Data services, including text messages, drew 140 complaints, of which 44 concerned billing and charging.
Why do data bundles run out early?
The CA says complaints describe data being depleted or disconnected before the validity period ends. The figures do not state a cause.
What can I do if my bundle disappears?
Check the balance and validity period, then ask the provider for a credit. The CA handles escalated complaints, but only after the provider has been tried first.
Is Safaricom or Airtel named in the complaints?
No. The CA’s published figures do not say which operator drew the complaints, and we do not link them to any company.
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