Nairobi advocate Moses N. Mabeya has moved to the High Court seeking orders that could pave the way for a nationwide class action against Safaricom PLC over its alleged practice of deactivating and reassigning mobile phone numbers without adequate notice, claiming the process has exposed millions of subscribers to financial losses and privacy violations.
In a constitutional petition filed before the Constitutional and Human Rights Division of the High Court, Advocate Mabeya accuses Safaricom and several state agencies of failing to protect consumers from what he describes as a long running and systemic practice of recycling SIM cards without sufficient safeguards. The suit names the Communications Authority of Kenya, the Ministry of Information, Communications and the Digital Economy, the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner, the Competition Authority of Kenya and the Attorney General as respondents, while the Law Society of Kenya, Okiya Omtatah and the Unclaimed Financial Assets Authority have been listed as interested parties.
According to the petition filed by Mabeya, the dispute arose after he allegedly discovered that his mobile number had been registered in another person’s name despite previously using it for mobile money, banking services, social media accounts and other personal communications
Mabeya claims the number was later deactivated and reassigned without prior notice, an opportunity to be heard or adequate protection of his personal data.
Mabeya further alleges that Safaricom’s practice of recycling SIM cards allows mobile numbers to be reassigned while leaving behind financial assets such as M-PESA balances, Bonga Points, airtime, data bundles and savings linked to the original subscriber. He also contends that the process exposes former customers to risks including identity theft, loss of digital accounts and breaches of privacy.
In the court papers, Mabeya argues that Safaricom has “unfairly, illegally and unlawfully retained and/or unjustly enriched itself by retaining and continuing to derive benefit from subscribers’ financial property, including but not limited to M-PESA balances, airtime, Bonga Points, data bundles, savings and other monetary or quasi-monetary assets associated with deregistered and recycled SIM cards,” adding that affected subscribers have allegedly been denied access to their property and personal information.
Mabeya is seeking the court’s permission to prosecute the matter as a representative suit on behalf of all Safaricom subscribers allegedly affected by the practice over the last 10 years. He is also asking the court to compel Safaricom to preserve and disclose records relating to deregistered and reassigned mobile numbers, including information on unclaimed balances associated with those accounts.
Additionally, Mabeya wants the court to issue an interim order directing Safaricom to deposit Ksh50 billion into a joint interest-bearing escrow account as security for potential claims by affected subscribers pending the hearing and determination of the petition.
Justice Gregory Mutai has directed Advocate Moses Mabeya to serve all respondents and interested parties within three working days.
The respondents will have 14 days after service to file their responses, after which the matter will be mentioned on September 17, 2026, for compliance and further directions.
