Kenya’s newly launched automated instant fines system has been halted by a High Court order just days after the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) rolled it out publicly.
The Instant Fines Management System, which NTSA described as “fully automated and operating without human intervention,” uses road cameras to detect traffic violations, reads number plates, and sends penalty notices directly to motorists by SMS.
Instant fines range from KES 500 to KES 10,000, with drivers given seven days to pay through KCB Bank channels.
READ: NTSA Instant Fines: How Much Will You Pay for Traffic Offenses
Petitioners Sheria Mtaani and advocate Shadrack Wambui argue that receiving a fine via text message, generated by a camera and an algorithm with no officer, no hearing, and no chance to explain yourself, strips Kenyans of basic constitutional protections before they’ve paid a single shilling.
Milimani High Court Justice Bahati Mwamuye has now issued a conservatory order temporarily prohibiting NTSA and all related parties from implementing the traffic violation penalties pending a full hearing.
“A conservatory order is hereby issued restraining the respondents and the interested party, both jointly and severally, and whether by themselves, their officers, agents, related entities, or any person acting under their authority or together with them in a multi-agency framework, from issuing, generating, demanding, or enforcing instant or automated traffic penalties produced through algorithmic or other automated decision-making systems and implementing or further implementing the impugned Instant Fines Traffic Management System.”
Part of the court order.
Respondents to the case are the State Law Office, NTSA, and KCB Bank Kenya.
The case may ultimately determine whether automated, contactless enforcement is constitutional or whether the rights of motorists require a human in the loop.
Justice Mwamunye has set the next court mention, which is scheduled for April 9, 2026.
