National Insurance Institute underpaid benefits to eligible recipients
An insured person who received a reduced benefit dragged the institute to the labor court, where it turned out that he was paid thousands of shekels less than the official tables without any explanation for the worrying gap. This is what the court determined, and the great concern of benefit recipients following the exceptional case.
The Regional Labor Court in Beersheba has exposed a serious deficiency in the conduct of the National Insurance Institute (Bituach Leumi): the payment of benefits at a lower rate than that appearing in the official tables of the institute itself, without providing any explanation or justification.
The case concerned Segev Avraham Pixler, recognized as a victim of hostilities with a 20% disability due to post-traumatic stress following the events of October 7. After an initial rejection, the National Insurance Institute retroactively approved eligibility for a loss-of-livelihood benefit (Hefer) for a period of seven months. However, while according to the institute's tables an insured person in his situation is entitled to 7,566.71 shekels gross per month, in practice he was paid only about 5,615 shekels — a monthly gap of 1,951 shekels.
As published in "Bizportal", during the legal proceedings, the National Insurance Institute was required to explain the gap between the payment set in its tables and the amount actually paid, but it chose not to respond to this claim at all.
Judge Yael Engelberg-Shoham ruled that since the institute provided no response, the insured person's calculations were not refuted. Consequently, the National Insurance Institute was ordered to pay the plaintiff the full payment difference totaling 13,658.72 shekels gross.
This case highlights a worrying reality in which insured persons receive benefits lower than what they are entitled to according to the institute's own guidelines. The case illustrates that without insured persons strictly standing up for their rights and turning to the courts, funds owed by law may remain in the state treasury.
