Harel Insurance Sued for 129,000 Shekels Over Denied Nursing Claim
A 79-year-old resident of Givatayim has filed a 129,735 NIS lawsuit against Harel Insurance in Herzliya. The company rejected his long-term care claim based on covert surveillance, ignoring its own doctor's findings.
A severe lawsuit filed in the Herzliya Magistrate's Court has exposed highly controversial conduct by Harel Insurance Company. The plaintiff, a 79-year-old resident of Givatayim, holds two long-term care insurance policies with the company (a group policy for Clalit Health Services members and a private policy). He suffers from multiple severe medical conditions, including heart disease, diabetes, chronic lung disease, and severe orthopedic issues. Following a hip replacement surgery in August 2025, his functional capacity deteriorated significantly.
Following this decline, the plaintiff approached Harel to claim his long-term care benefits, which exceed 11,000 NIS per month. To evaluate the claim, Harel dispatched a physician on its behalf to assess his daily functioning.
Medical Assessment vs. Covert Surveillance
The examining doctor's findings were unequivocal: the elderly man was found to be dependent in four basic activities of daily living (transferring, dressing, bathing, and continence). Under the terms of the policy, these findings entitle him to full benefits. This assessment was further supported by two separate dependency evaluations conducted by the National Insurance Institute (Bituach Leumi).
Despite the explicit findings of its own physician, Harel sent a rejection letter to the insured in June. The company claimed that a covert surveillance operation conducted about a month prior to the medical exam showed he functioned better and could transfer, dress, and bathe independently. Based on these brief surveillance clips, the company chose to reject the claim and disregard the direct medical examinations.
Legal Action and Claims of Bad Faith
Represented by attorneys Rafael Almog and Ariel Gold of Rafael Almog & Co., the elderly man filed a lawsuit for 129,735 NIS for past unpaid benefits, alongside a demand for ongoing monthly payments and special punitive interest under the Insurance Contract Law due to bad faith.
Attorney Rafael Almog sharply criticized the insurer's practices:
"It is difficult to accept a situation where an insurance company sends its own doctor, receives clear findings establishing eligibility, and then rejects its own medical assessment in favor of covert surveillance. A few minutes of footage cannot replace a professional examination or erase a complex medical condition. This conduct raises concerns of a systematic attempt to evade payments, targeting elderly policyholders who struggle to wage legal battles."
A statement of defense has not yet been filed.
