The Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK) helped suppliers, mostly small businesses, to recover Sh76.29 million in the year ended June 2025, even as cases of exploitation by dominant buyers dropped.
The competition watchdog said the amount was recovered in the period when it received 59 cases related to abuse of buyer power. In the previous year, CAK had helped small firms recover Sh89.52 million out of the 82 cases it received.
Abuse of buyer power occurs when a large or influential purchaser uses its superior bargaining position to obtain supply terms that are more favourable than would arise under normal commercial arrangements, or that are disproportionate, unfair, and detrimental to a supplier. Such include delayed payments and forced cost-sharing.
The watchdog has been stepping up enforcement against abuse of buyer power.
The Competition Act allows CAK to pursue administrative remedies, including penalties up to 10 percent of a company’s annual turnover, fines of up to Sh10 million, or up to five years’ imprisonment.
CAK says it investigated 59 cases of abuse of buyer power, with 40 being concluded as of the end of the reporting period. This led to the release of the Sh76.29 million in delayed payments owed to suppliers. The insurance sector was in the spotlight, accounting for 47.7 percent of all cases investigated.
‘This can be attributed in part to increased sensitization efforts to the insurance sector players,’ said CAK in the latest report.
The Insurance Act requires insurers to settle claims within 90 days of receiving all necessary documentation from policyholders.
The retail sector recorded 11.43 percent of the cases, followed by the construction and telecommunication sectors (each at 10 percent), the agriculture sector (7.74 percent and intellectual property 5.71 percent. Other sectors included manufacturing, hospitality, cosmetics, healthcare, translation services, and electronics, each accounting for 1.43 percent.
Over the same period, there was an uptick in consumer complaints against various companies, with the reported cases jumping 37.1 percent to 915 from 658.
‘This surge is attributable to sustained efforts to raise awareness among consumers about their rights and obligations, and the authority’s robust complaints-handling mechanisms,’ said CAK.
The watchdog said the interventions in customers’ complaints resulted in savings of Sh21.4 million. The redress was in the form of refunds, repairs, or replacements arising from goods or services purchased.
CAK has continued to put the spotlight on firms abusing their dominant positions. In December 2025, the watchdog penalised Directline Assurance Company Sh85.02 million for abusing its superior bargaining position over two Nairobi-based automobile repair centres.
Directline was also ordered to settle outstanding payments totalling Sh6.06 million to the two companies- small enterprises that provide services such as panel beating, spray-painting, and mechanical repairs on motor vehicles. The firm was ordered to revise its contracts to include interest on late payments.