Safaricom limits reverse calls to 2 free per day with Sh0.50 for third

Communication service provider Safaricom PLC has made significant changes to its popular reverse call service.

While the reverse call service is still available, the company has announced that it will now only be available for two free calls per day.

Customers will incur a charge of Sh0.50 from the third call onwards if they make more than two reverse calls in a single day. This implies that the sponsor will only bill the reverse call initiator on the third request of the day once they accept it.

However, Safaricom noted that after the third call, users will not incur any additional charges for the rest of the day.

“You have one free reverse call left for today; kindly top up your line with airtime or dial *131# for Okoa Jahazi. You will be charged 50 cents on your third reverse call request. Please note you will not incur any other cost to use this service for the rest of the day,” showed a message from Safaricom responding to a concerned customer.

Safaricom customers can use the reverse call service to make calls even without airtime, with the receiver bearing the call cost. Previously, unlimited reverse calls were free of charge.

A file picture of Safaricom CEO Peter Ndegwa. (Photo: Safaricom PLC)

All Safaricom subscribers are eligible to use the service. To initiate a reverse call, customers need to dial #, followed by the number they wish to call. For example, #07123456789.

When the receiver answers the call, an announcement prompts them to either accept or decline it. The receiver can either press 1 to accept or 2 to decline. If they accept, the call will be charged at the normal rate.

If they don’t accept or decline, the call is disconnected, ensuring that neither party is charged in such cases.

Since its inception, the reverse call service has gained significant traction among Safaricom users.

According to a 2023 report by the service provider, Kenyans made 130 million reverse calls in the 12 months to March, underscoring the growing popularity of the feature that enables callers to transfer call charges to receivers.

The feature was introduced to complement the "Please Call Me" service, which enables a customer to send five free messages to other customers requesting a callback.

“Since inception, the number of customers engaging daily on the reverse call service has increased significantly, with reverse calls almost doubling from 73 million to 130 million,” Safaricom said in its Sustainability Report, 2023.