Customer Sues HOT After Being Secretly Charged for Seven Years
A customer of the Israeli telecommunications company HOT is suing the company after discovering he was automatically charged for services for seven years, despite officially canceling his subscription. The customer claims he followed the proper procedure in August 2019, using HOT's official 'Netek' website to terminate his service. However, HOT allegedly continued to charge his credit card approximately 30.35 shekels per month for 84 consecutive months.
The customer only became aware of the ongoing charges in May of this year, realizing that the consistent, low-value payments had gone unnoticed for years. In total, he was charged around 2,550 shekels without receiving any service. When he contacted HOT's customer service to reclaim the money, he was reportedly offered only a partial refund of 500 shekels, which he rejected.
He has now filed a lawsuit in the Tel Aviv Magistrate's Court seeking 4,000 shekels, which includes the full amount charged without justification, plus compensation for the distress, inconvenience, and time spent addressing the issue. The lawsuit highlights a breach of public trust and the damage caused to a customer who acted in good faith.
The case is being handled by Vice President Judge Tal Havkin, known for his thorough examination of consumer cases. The court will review the cancellation request, the continuous billing, and HOT's response after the issue was discovered. This case raises broader questions about the practices of telecommunications companies when customers seek to end their contracts, and previous rulings against HOT regarding content and technician no-shows suggest a pattern of consumer-related issues.
