A tribunal has found taxi-hailing company Bolt in breach of the Transportation Network Companies, Owners, Drivers and Passengers Regulations 2022.
Consequently, the Transport Licensing Appeals Board directed the cab-hailing firm to comply within 48 hours, failure to which its license shall stand suspended from Friday and its transport operations cease.
The decision came a day after the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) renewed Bolt’s license after the company dropped its booking fee.
A driver, Mr Kennedy Wainaina Mbugua complained that Bolt has not met and/or breached the requirements for licensing a transport network firm since it has no physical office.
It also does not have any local contacts for complaints and as at May 2023 it only had a London telephone number on its platform.
"It is our considered view that the 2nd Respondent (Bolt) 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, Drivers and Passengers) Regulations, 2022," the Tribunal said on Tuesday.
The Tribunal chaired by Adrian Kamotho directed the firm to furnish the Tribunal with Regulations, which bar ride-hailing apps from providing services for more than eight hours continuously in 24 hours.
The driver accused Bolt of running its affairs outside the terms of the regulations including arbitrary deductions, removal of drivers from the platform, lack of complaint resolution mechanisms and no physical address as legally required.
The Tribunal directed the firm to pay Mr Mbugua more than Sh1 million for the days he was out of work because the company failed to comply with the regulations.
The Tribunal further directed Bolt to immediately restore Mr Mbugua's status before May 31 to operate on the platform and also refund his full cash arrears from the transport network platform on May 17, 2023.
Several drivers had complained to the NTSA, forcing the regulator to decline to renew the operation license for Bolt.
Mr Mbugua had asked the Tribunal and pleaded with the court to order NTSA to revoke the license of the firm until it complies with the Regulations.
The Tribunal, however, dismissed a claim by the driver over the alleged breach of data privacy and was directed to file the complaint with the office of the Data Commission.
