Safaricom recently unveiled a product dubbed: Smart Choice for a Smart Lifestyle that enables those who yearn to own a smart phone or tablet but can’t afford the price an opportunity to buy and pay for a device of their’s dreams in 12 monthly installments. In addition to getting the phone or tablet via hire purchase, you also get free Safaricom to Safaricom minutes, SMS and data every month. Here’s the catch, your application to buy a device is subjected to approval.

If your application is approved, you will be allowed to take the device.

Payment Options

There are 2 ways of paying for the device upon approval:

• Bank Financed
• Credit Card

If you choose Bank Financed, you will have to apply for the offer at any Equity Bank and upon approval, which will take about 72 hours, you will be provided with a bank code, which you will use to pick your device from a Safricom Retail Shop. Some of the requirements for Bank Financing is pay slip dating back to 3 months and PIN.

The Credit Card payment option entails you setting up a credit card arrangement at any Safricom Retail Shop. It will take about 24 hours for your application to be approved and you will be required to pay the first installment before you pick the phone. The remaining 11 instalments shall be debited from your Credit Card every month.

Currently Safaricom accepts KCB and Barclays Credit Cards. All applications will be subjected to credit vetting.

This product allows you to take one phone and one tablet at a go. Once you have completed your installments for one or both devices, you can get another device on credit.

So, What Smart Phone Can you Get?

Only selected devices can be purchased under this product, check them out below:

[caption id="attachment_19739" align="alignnone" width="532"] sourced from safaricom.co.ke[/caption]

As it is the norm in most hire purchase purchases, you’ll end up paying more buying via hire purchase when compared to paying cash for the device.

Below is the price difference between buying on credit, under the Credit Card payment option, and paying cash for the price.

Below are a few terms of sale worth noting:

• Title to the Device and related accessories shall pass to you on payment in full of any monies outstanding on the Purchase Price.
• Risk in the Device will pass to you upon purchase.
• You will immediately notify Safaricom of any loss theft or damage to the Device and in any event within four days of such occurrence, and shall be responsible for its replacement costs.
• If you find that the Device is faulty or defective then you should immediately return it to Safaricom or its authorised agent together with the receipt for the purchase, within three days of purchase. Safaricom shall only be responsible for the replacement of the Device in the case of manufacturer’s defects and only if you can show that the Device has been used in accordance with any documentation or reasonable instructions provided by the Manufacturer or Safaricom.
• Any repairs required outside the Manufacturer’s Warranty may be carried out through Safaricom at a cost to be met by you; such payment being made simultaneous with the return of the Device for repair.
• Payment shall be made on or before the Due Date in the Safaricom retail shops or by cheques payable to “SAFARICOM LIMITED”.
• Notwithstanding the loss or damage of the Device, you remain responsible to pay Safaricom the full Purchase Price of the Device.
• If Safaricom has not received your payment by the Due Date or have not received any then Safaricom may: Repossess or block the Device and/or; charge interest on the unpaid amount at a rate of 2% above the base rate of Barclays Bank of Kenya Limited from time to time; and/or; refer the debt to a collection agent and/or institute debt recovery proceedings for the recovery of the debt; and/or hold all pre and post judgement collection costs to your account until we receive payment in full.
• Safaricom reserve's the right to off set any sums owed by you under this Agreement against any sums Safaricom are holding to your credit or as a deposit under this Agreement or any other Agreement with you.

But hey, you'll have a smart phone.