Safaricom introduces real time network reporting tool

Following 90 days of gathering feedback from customers on the Safaricom Network Guarantee, Safaricom is pleased to announce updates to the service, which see the company provide customers with refunds should they encounter call drops on the network.

Under the new changes, customers will continue to be compensated for all of their dropped calls under the existing terms of service. However, refunds will now be provided cumulatively on a weekly basis.

Customers will also benefit from a real time network-reporting tool that will allow them to instantly alert the company of any coverage issues by sending an SMS to 5555.

“We are on a journey to build the best network for our customers. So far, the Safaricom Network Guarantee has given us valuable insights that we are using to fine tune our network to meet the needs of our customers more effectively – even as we prioritise our investment to where it matters to them the most,” said Bob Collymore, CEO, Safaricom.

Three months ago, the company launched the Safaricom Network Guarantee alongside a suite of products that aim to empower customers and provide the company with the responsibility of paying customers refunds when services disconnect on the network.

Since the launch, the number of dropped calls on the network has registered at less than 1 percent of total calls.

Safaricom is dedicated to undertaking a number of initiatives to improve call quality and has planned network upgrades to further increase capacity.

As part of its Sh30 billion investment in the network this year, Safaricom intends to use dynamic feedback from its network, continuous customer feedback and proactive network monitoring to dictate the roll out of new sites in areas where services may not be optimal.

At the same time, to eliminate the possibility of site interference, existing towers serving broad areas will be replaced with multiple sites closer to customers.

Safaricom has put up more than 170 new base stations in the last 90 days, many of them in areas where customers were experiencing call drops, bringing the total number of base stations to more than 4,000 with a population coverage exceeding 95 percent.

The Safaricom Network Guarantee will continue to only apply for calls within the network.

Under the new permanent offer, customers will be refunded for any uncompleted calls once a week with the refunded airtime valid for seven days.