[kictanet] Safaricom Attitude - Consumer Issues

Tue Aug 24 08:15:09 EAT 2010

Dear Wainaina and all,

Just to point out that from Friday this week, Consumer Rights  become constitutional matters under " The Bill of Rights" ,section 46 of the Constitution.

Weighty matters indeed!

John Kariuki.

--- On Mon, 23/8/10, Wainaina Mungai <wainaina at madeinkenya.org> wrote:

From: Wainaina Mungai <wainaina at madeinkenya.org>
Subject: Re: [kictanet] Safaricom Attitude - Consumer Issues
To: ngethe.kariuki2007 at yahoo.co.uk
Cc: "KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions" <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke>
Date: Monday, 23 August, 2010, 21:40

Agreed.
1. MPESA issues have been answered as that's how the service works to cover for security and related concerns.

2. The customer care concerns on Edith being told she was calling from the "wrong network" may not require CCK's involvement as yet. However, MJ may want to step in (before he gets back from China) and apologize to Edith; while re-educating the staff internally. 

Note however, that Edith did not call the customer care line....she called PRSP support....so it may have been better to simply refer her to the customer care team. My experience has been positive so I am surprised that the staff may have been rude to Dr. Edith.

That said, Zain today displayed very "peculiar" conduct as their promotion truck was driving slowly past Safaricom House. Here's the video evidence on Youtube - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lW8hpVLIFZo&feature=youtu.be

On Mon, Aug 23, 2010 at 11:00 PM, Solomon Mburu Kamau <solo.mburu at gmail.com> wrote:

On 23 August 2010 22:49, andrea.bohnstedt at ratio-magazine.com <andrea.bohnstedt at ratio-magazine.com> wrote:

Possibly. I may be dumb. If so, kindly explain it to me again so that I'll understand it.

I think the point raised by Edith was mostly revolving on the issue of cold customer care when she used a rival company's line to call the CC.

The rest, I think are as easy as ABC to understand.

I might have not given the whole view of my understanding, but I think it's logically wrong for the CC not to take the call from Edith warmly. After all, wasn't Edith paying for that call? Methinks it's up to the respective companies to instill some form of 'discipline' to their CC staff. I wonder loudly, suppose I went to Safaricom's shop/outlet or even House with a shirt emblazoned: ' Zain, Call A Wonderful World, for only 3 and texts at 1 across all networks in Kenya', and vice versa: 'Niko na Safaricom' will I be shoved off? 

Just thinking loudly!

-----Original Message-----

From: Edith Adera

Sent:  23/08/2010, 22:45

To: Andrea Bohnstedt

Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions

Subject: RE: [kictanet] Safaricom Attitude - Consumer Issues

Andrea,

You are missing the point!

Edith

________________

Edith Ofwona Adera

Senior Program Specialist

ICT4D Program

International Development Research Centre | Centre de recherches pour le développement international

Regional Office for Eastern and Southern Africa

Tel: +254202713160 | Fax/Téléc: +254202711063 | Skype: edithadera

eadera at idrc.or.ke<mailto:eadera at idrc.or.ke> | www.idrc.ca<http://www.idrc.ca/> | www.crdi.ca<http://www.crdi.ca/>

________________________________

From: Andrea Bohnstedt [andrea.bohnstedt at ratio-magazine.com]

Sent: 23 August 2010 22:43

To: Edith Adera

Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions

Subject: Re: [kictanet] Safaricom Attitude - Consumer Issues

Edith,

Why do you find it so surprising that you can't send an M-PESA payment if you don't have an M-PESA account? Can you make Zap payments without having a Zap account?

In a bank, you can pay cash into someone's account without having a bank account, but you need to go to that person's bank, and you can't make a bank transfer either without having an account yourself.

Also, the need to register before you make any mobile money payments is, as far as I know, a banking sector requirement imposed by the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK), the Know Your Customer (KYC) rules to combat money laundering etc.

That you need an M-PESA-enabled SIM card is an old story - that's been communicated since the beginning of the service, I think, even if it's of course it's regrettable that the agent you visited didn't have one.

Many regards,

Andrea

On 23 August 2010 22:28, Edith Adera <eadera at idrc.or.ke<mailto:eadera at idrc.or.ke>> wrote:

There's need for consumer issues to be taken VERY seriously in the Kenyan Telecommunication market. I believe CCK is listening and this should not be allowed to happen to any Kenyan consumer.

As a non-user of money transfer services (I'm a proxy user), I decided to try the Mpesa service today as I did not have a 3rd party proxy to undertake the transaction on my behalf as I usually do. The last I tried to register for the service, I was informed that I had an old generation SIM card and needed to replace it yet the agent did not have the replacement SIMs. I was directed to follow a convoluted process of getting the replacement SIM, which I did not have the time for at that point.

Today, I was rudely informed that as a non registered user I cannot send money by Mpesa (Prestige service provider) - never mind that I have a very active Safaricom line. This puzzled me as in the banking sector, you can always bank money into any account at a bank in which you're not a "member".

So in search for an answer to this issue, I decided to call a Safaricom Officer (Ms Bernice - department that issues Short Codes) to get some assistance. I called her on my Zain line. As soon as she picked the call, she was very cold and retorted "for starters, you have called me from the wrong network - meaning from Zain - and secondly, you cannot send money if you are not a registered user".

My issue as a consumer is - why should I be rebuked for using my Zain line to call Safaricom? Is it a Safaricom policy that no one should call them using a Zain line or lines from other network providers? what does the CCK regulations say about such issues? My little telecommunication background tells me that the "consumer is king" and that a consumer must exercise their "right of choice" in a competitive market. why should I be dictated to what network I MUST USE or NOT use to make calls? Is this a reflection of the interconnection issues that are currently hitting media headlines?

I have taken this issue very seriously and demand an apology and response from Safaricom. I believe CCK will take appropriate action to ensure that this is not the modus operandi in the Kenyan telecommunication market.

Edith

Kenyan Consumer

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