NAIROBI, Kenya—The Transport Licensing Appeals Board has suspended Nicco Movers’ Public Service Vehicle (PSV) operator licence with immediate effect after 45 of the 51 company vehicles presented for inspection failed to meet the required safety standards.
The company has been given seven days to address ten compliance concerns raised by the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA), following which the regulator could take further action if the operator fails to comply.
The Tribunal set aside NTSA’s earlier decision to revoke Nicco Movers’ PSV operator licence, communicated in a letter dated June 9, 2026, and instead ordered an immediate suspension of the licence.
“The respondent’s decision revoking the appellant’s PSV operator licence…is hereby set aside. In substitution thereof, the appellant’s PSV operator licence is suspended with immediate effect,” the Tribunal ruled.
The inspection findings revealed widespread safety deficiencies across the company’s fleet. Only six of the 51 vehicles examined passed the inspection.
Among the defects identified were missing or faulty passenger seat belts, defective doors and window locks, faulty horns and lights and damaged body panels. Some vehicles were also found operating without first-aid kits and fire extinguishers.
The safety concerns emerged against the backdrop of two fatal incidents involving Nicco Movers vehicles within a period of six months.
The most recent involved Kenya Medical Training College student Eugene Mutivi Mutuku, who died on June 5 after falling from a moving Nicco Movers vehicle along Thika Superhighway near Waumini Radio Station.
During proceedings, Eugene’s mother, Jacinta Nzilani Mutuku, told the Tribunal that her son had been pushed out of the moving vehicle by a conductor.
Nicco Movers disputed the account, telling NTSA that Eugene had jumped from the vehicle.
The Tribunal declined to determine which account was accurate, noting that the circumstances surrounding the death were a matter for the criminal justice system.
It nevertheless noted that Eugene’s death was the second fatal incident involving a Nicco Movers vehicle within six months.
In January, another company vehicle, registration number KDQ 655D, was involved in a crash along Thika Superhighway near Kenyatta University and Kahawa Sukari, resulting in the death of a pedestrian.
NTSA also presented evidence of other safety and compliance concerns involving the company’s fleet.
According to the regulator’s records, 30 Nicco Movers vehicles had been recorded travelling above the prescribed speed limit of 80 kilometres per hour.
A further 11 vehicles were not transmitting speed-limiter data, while another vehicle was found operating without a speed limiter. Ten vehicles had no speed-limiter records, and three had expired inspection certificates.
The Tribunal said the combined evidence went beyond what could be described as an isolated incident, pointing to the fatalities, speeding violations, speed-limiter problems and widespread inspection failures as indicators of broader compliance concerns.
However, the Board found that NTSA had gone too far in opting to revoke the company’s entire operating licence.
It noted that the regulator had other enforcement options available, including grounding individual vehicles, requiring drivers to undergo fresh testing, conducting compliance audits and suspending the operator’s licence.
The Tribunal consequently substituted the revocation with the immediate suspension, giving Nicco Movers seven days to remedy the ten compliance concerns identified by NTSA.
If the company fails to comply, NTSA may issue a fresh notice to show cause after 14 days, potentially opening the way for further enforcement action, including revocation of the operator’s licence.
The Tribunal also rejected Nicco Movers’ argument that NTSA should have waited for criminal investigations into Eugene’s death to be completed before taking regulatory action.
It held that criminal proceedings and transport regulation serve different purposes, and that NTSA has an independent responsibility to protect passengers and other road users without having to wait for a criminal conviction.
The suspension therefore places Nicco Movers under a strict compliance deadline, with the future of its PSV operating licence depending on whether it addresses the safety concerns raised by the regulator.
