Court Awards Severely Injured Soldier About NIS 13.9 Million, Pending Benefits Offset

The Lod District Court recently ruled that a 30-year-old man who was badly injured in a car crash during his mandatory military service nine years ago is entitled to about NIS 13.9 million in compensation from his insurer, Clal. But Judge Irit Cohen said he will only receive the money if he gives up the benefits and allowances he currently gets from the Defense Ministry and repays what he has already received.

The crash happened in the summer of 2017, leaving him with multi-system injuries, including skull and rib fractures, and forcing him to undergo several surgeries. He spent 175 days hospitalized at Rambam and Loewenstein hospitals. His claim against the Defense Ministry’s compensation officer had already been accepted, and he now receives a monthly stipend and other benefits. He was recognized as 100 percent disabled for complete paralysis in his right hand, along with additional disabilities tied to cognitive decline, speech disorder and depression.

In court, the man said he has struggled to move since the accident, needs help with the simplest tasks, and suffers from fatigue, pain and irritability. His 71-year-old mother testified that he cannot put on socks or apply toothpaste on a toothbrush by himself, and that she cuts hard food for him and prepares hot drinks. She said she used to help him in the bathroom too, though now he manages alone using his left hand.

Clal argued there was a large gap between his claimed functioning and his actual condition, presenting surveillance videos that allegedly showed him getting out of a car alone, closing the driver’s door, entering a multimedia store, and standing at a gas station. Cohen agreed the footage showed better functioning than claimed, but said it did not undermine the rehabilitation expert’s view that, given his severe injuries and lack of formal education, his chances of entering the labor market are “extremely slim.” She also accepted the expert’s estimate that, because his mother is aging and his father died about a year before the crash, he will likely need a live-in caregiver in the future, at a cost of more than NIS 4 million. The court set aside about a quarter of the award, NIS 3.6 million, until his National Insurance Institute rights are finalized; if he gets more from the NII than that amount, he will not receive the extra and must refund the difference to the insurer.