The Transport Licensing Appeals Board (TLAB) has ordered the European-based ride-hailing app Bolt to pay a Kenyan taxi driver over Ksh 1 million and reinstate him for illegally terminating his account.

The applicant, Kennedy Wainaina Mbugua, was a taxi driver registered on the platform. Additionally, he was registered in compliance with the National Transport and Safety Authority (Transport Network Companies, Owners, Drivers and Passengers) Regulations 2022.

Mr. Mbugua sued Bolt for an alleged data privacy breach and wrongful dismissal from the ride-hailing platform since May 15, 2023. 

The board found that by lacking proper channels for activating and deactivating accounts, Bolt had not complied with Article 47 of the Constitution of Kenya and the Fair Administrative Action Act 2015.

“In deactivating the account of the Applicant, the 2nd Respondent acted capriciously and with impunity,” TLAB Chairperson Adrian Kamotho ruled.

Subsequently, the board ordered Bolt to refund the money withdrawn from the Bolt driver’s wallet and compensate him for the lost wages since his termination.

“The 2nd Respondent, Bolt Operations OU, shall immediately compensate the Applicant Kenya Shillings One Million and Eight Thousand (Cash 1,008,000.00), for the 168 days he has been out of work to wit: from 15th May 2023 to 31st October 2023 at a rate of Kenya Shillings 6,000 per day,” the Appeals Board ruled.

Responding to the ruling, Bolt Kenya Country Manager Linda Ndungu termed the ruling as a “targeted move.”

In its submission, Bolt argued that the transport tribunal had no jurisdiction to hear the matter, which was overruled.

The transport board also held Bolt in violation of the National Transport and Safety Authority (Transport Network Companies, Owners, Drivers and Passengers) Regulations 2022.

"It is our considered view that Bolt Operations has failed to comply and or prove compliance with the law, including various requirements of the National Transport and Safety Authority (Transport Network Companies, Owners, Driver,s and Passengers) Regulations, 2022," the tribunal stated.

Subsequently, the tribunal ordered Bolt to file documents related to compliance with Regulation 7 of the NTSA Regulations within 48 hours. 

Failure to comply with NTSA regulations, Bolt’s license to operate in Kenya could be revoked from November 3, 2023, and "the firm shall forthwith cease transport network operations." 

Nevertheless, the NTSA has renewed Bolt’s license to operate in Kenya.

However, the tribunal failed to rule on the data privacy breach and directed it to the Office of the Data Commissioner, formed under the Data Protection Act 2019.

The data privacy breach issue stemmed from the lack of physical offices in Kenya. The Data Protection Act 2019 requires that companies dealing with substantial data collected from Kenyans store it within the country. Subsequently, transferring data abroad could be interpreted as a data privacy breach. 

When the appeal was filed on May 18, 2023, Bolt did not have a physical office in Kenya or a local phone number for dealing with complaints. Bolt could not offer a compelling counterclaim for these allegations.

“Indeed, save for mere denials, the Respondents did not offer any direct response to the substantive claims by the Appellant. As such, based on the material tendered by the Appellant and the non-responsiveness by the Respondents, the position asserted by the Appellant largely remains uncontroverted,” Kamotho said.

Bolt operates in 45 cities in five continents. Although the company claims to have offices in every city they operate, there was no specific office for Nairobi (archived link) when this blog post was uploaded. 

Taxi drivers, some under Kenya’s Ridehail Transport Association, have sued at least 14 ride-hailing apps for alleged violations and harassment. 

Drivers accuse the apps of punitive and harsh measures and skewed rules benefiting the companies at the expense of the drivers. Punishments range from fines and limiting orders to account termination. 

Additionally, some complain about the pricing model, which aims to provide affordable rides to customers and guarantee the companies’ commission without regard to drivers’ profit. Bolt drivers pay an 18% commission on profits from using the platform. Other charges, such as booking fees, are deemed illegal by transport regulations. 

Bolt insists the booking fees are paid by the customers, it has various channels for addressing complaints, and it is duly registered to operate in Kenya, as evidenced by its license renewal on Oct 31, 2023.