KPLC Will be Required to Pay Consumers for Damage Caused By Blackouts

The Kenya Power Company (popularly known by its trading ticker KPLC) will be required to pay consumers for any losses caused by unscheduled blackouts, if proposed regulations by Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA) are passed into law.

The payment for damage to property will be in the form of tokens equivalent to the financial damage caused by the blackout or surge. For postpaid customers, the compensation will be in form of credit in the next monthly bill.  

These proposals are contained in the Energy (Electricity Reliability, Quality of Supply and Service) Regulations, 2024 which were gazetted on Friday, May 24 for public participation before they can be adopted into law by Parliament.

Consumers can expect compensation for verifiable losses incurred during power outages. The nature of claims are property damage, financial loss, bodily injury, and loss of life.  Consumers are expected to report any damages caused by power irregularities.

Reporting of complaint

The complainant is expected to write to KPLC within 30 days of the breach. They should include the date and time of the occurrence and the nature of events leading up to it. 

Additionally, they should have supporting documents such as medical reports for bodily injury, post-mortem reports in case of loss of life, and receipts or invoices that show the value of property damaged.

KPLC is expected to come up with a compensation policy that aligns with new regulations. The utility firm will be required to file all incidence reports, safety reports, security reports, and installation reports and pay the complainant within 90 days after determination of the claim.

In the event that there is no agreement between the power company and the consumer, the complaint can be referred to EPRA for determination.

"For purposes of processing compensation, the licensee shall put in place adequate procedures and mechanisms for resolving compensation complaints in respect of property damage, financial losses, bodily injury and/or loss of life due to failure, poor quality or irregular supply of electricity," EPRA's regulations read in part.

Exemptions to compensation payment

KPLC will not be required to compensate the complainant if the power issue was caused by third-party interference on KPLC's transmission system. Power outages caused by an inevitable accident, or by forces of nature will not be liable for compensation. This will include instances where the consumer is found to have engaged in illegal connections.

The development comes as KPLC has been working to upgrade its power systems. On Monday, May 27, Kenya Power gave a notice that its vending system would be unavailable from Sunday night, June 2nd to Monday night, June 3 - for a period of 24 hours (10pm Sunday - Monday 10pm).

This means consumers will not be able to purchase tokens during this time through any channel including Kenya Power offices, mobile money, or banks. The utility firm advised customers to buy enough tokens beforehand to avoid any inconvenience.