How To Unlock A Suspended M-Pesa Account When Your SIM Has Been Inactive

Safaricom reserves the right to suspend your M-Pesa account if you use it for unauthorized purposes or leave it inactive for a specific period of time. If your account is suspended, you will not be able to use M-Pesa services until it is unlocked. But do you know how to unlock a suspended M-Pesa account when your SIM has been inactive?

While Kenya is still a cash-heavy economy, more than 98 percent of all mobile money transactions in Kenya are conducted through M-PESA. By offering faster, more accessible, and affordable financial services, M-Pesa has fundamentally altered the landscape of financial services in Kenya. It has gained popularity as an alternative to conventional banking.

About Safaricom M-Pesa

M-Pesa is a mobile phone-based money transfer service launched in the Kenyan market in 2007 by Vodafone and Safaricom. It allows users to deposit and withdraw money from a network of agents, including banking agents.

Over time, the service has extended beyond its original home in Kenya to other countries, including Tanzania and Mozambique. It has risen through the ranks to become the leading mobile money platform worldwide in terms of regular users and transactions. Today, it handles about 900 transactions per second and has over 25 million customers.

The service has been lauded for giving millions of people access to the formal financial system. Nowadays, customers can pay for almost everything through the platform from the comfort of their mobile devices. However, this is only possible if they have an active M-Pesa account.

Why is your M-Pesa account suspended?

Safaricom reserves the right to suspend your M-Pesa account at its sole discretion. There are several reasons why your M-Pesa account is suspended. These include:

• The most obvious one is to deter fraud. If Safaricom has any reasonable grounds to suspect that your M-Pesa account is being used to receive or send funds in connection with any criminal or fraudulent activity, it will suspend your account.
• The company may be forced to suspend your account if you use it for unauthorized purposes.
• Your account could also be suspended if you part with your number or fail to use your SIM card for 90 days.
• Your account could also be suspended if you submit a written notice to Safaricom asking them to deactivate it. However, Safaricom will only act upon these instructions if your M-Pesa balance reads zero.
• Safaricom reserves the right to request further information about your M-Pesa account. If you fail to provide the information, your M-Pesa account may be suspended or terminated.
• The company could also suspend an M-Pesa account upon receipt of notification of death or mental incapacity of an M-Pesa user.

What happens when your account is suspended?

If your account is suspended, Safaricom will hold the balance of funds in your M-Pesa account for two years. After the expiry of the period, the funds will be submitted to the Unclaimed Financial Assets Authority.

If your M-Pesa account is suspended due to an inactive SIM, it will be archived. Safaricom will deactivate and recycle the MSISDN and make it available to another customer as required by law.

How to activate your suspended M-Pesa account

If your M-Pesa account has been suspended, there is no need to panic. You can easily activate your M-Pesa account if you visit a Safaricom shop near you. But, before you visit the Safaricom shop, you can try to get through to a customer care agent by dialling 100 or 234 from your Safaricom line.

If you get through, tell the agent that you want to unlock or activate your M-Pesa account. The agent may ask you a few questions about the line before activating it. Depending on the magnitude of the problem, the agent could request that you visit a Safaricom shop near you.

There, you will talk to a customer agent about the issue, who will explain why the account was locked. You may be asked a few questions about the M-Pesa account. If you answer the questions truthfully, the customer care agent will activate the suspended M-Pesa account.

How to open a locked M-Pesa account

If your M-Pesa account has been locked, there are several tools you have at your disposal to recover your M-Pesa account. Here are the different options you can pursue to recover it.

Option 1

• Open My Safaricom App on your phone.
• Scroll to the M-Pesa option and choose My Account.
• Tap on the M-Pesa Unlock tab.
• You will be prompted to key in your national ID number to unlock your M-Pesa account.
• Wait for a confirmation message on your phone to know if the transaction is successful.

Option 2

• Dial the USSD code *334# using your Safaricom line.
• Choose My Account.
• Select M-Pesa Pin Manager.
• Select M-Pesa Pin Unlock.
• Enter your ID number to unlock your M-Pesa account.
• You will receive a message stating that your M-Pesa account is unlocked.

Wrapping up

There you have it. A comprehensive guide on how to unlock a suspended M-Pesa account when your SIM has been inactive. Safaricom has made it easy for you to unlock your M-Pesa account, and you do not need to visit the Safaricom shops to accomplish this. But, if the problem persists after trying these options, you may have no choice but to visit the nearest Safaricom shop.

DISCLAIMER: This article is not sponsored by any third party. It is intended for general informational purposes only and does not address individual circumstances. It is not a substitute for professional advice or help and should not be relied on to make decisions of any kind. Any action you take upon the information presented in this article is strictly at your own risk and responsibility!

Tuko.co.ke published a guide on how to withdraw money from till number to your M-Pesa account. The M-Pesa business till allows business owners to collect payments on the till and use the funds collected to make other transactions directly from the till. It is ideal for a wide range of businesses, including hardware stores, supermarkets, salons, restaurants, and pharmacies.

However, some transactions cannot be performed directly from the till. In such a case, you may need to withdraw money from your M-Pesa till to the nominated number. All transactions, including withdrawals, are done via the nominated number through the M-Pesa app or by dialling the USSD code *234#. Read this post to learn more.