Article 23 of the Saudi Privatization Law

This article protects beneficiaries, meaning the public who receive the service from the private company after privatization:

First: full equality. The private party must deal with the beneficiaries of its works and services with full equality under the terms of the contract or subsidiary contract. The exceptions are:

• If the contract created special rights for certain categories of beneficiaries, such as discounts for a specific category; or
• If the contract provides otherwise.

Second: no restrictive practices. The private party may not:

• Refuse to provide the works and services to beneficiaries.
• Restrict providing them on condition of using other services, such as requiring the purchase of an additional service.
• Engage in any other restrictive practices.

All of this applies unless the contract or subsidiary contract provides otherwise.

In practice, a public service does not lose its public character by moving to the private sector; the company may not choose its customers or discriminate between them except as far as the contract allows. A beneficiary who is denied the service or discriminated against may consult a lawyer who specializes in civil or administrative matters. Article 24 on collecting fees follows.