Israelis Complain En Masse About Telecom Services, Receive Millions in Refunds
Translated & summarized from Cursorinfo by baba
Israelis filed nearly 8,000 complaints against telecom providers in 2025, with mobile and internet services being the most frequent issues. The Ministry of Communications facilitated refunds totaling over 855,000 shekels for various billing and service problems. Companies like Telzar, HOT, and Xphone received the most complaints, while a new antenna was activated to improve regional mobile coverage.
The story in 6 lines · by baba
- Israelis filed 7,913 telecom complaints in 2025, a 9.5% increase from the previous year.
- The Ministry of Communications returned 855,423 shekels to consumers due to telecom service issues.
- Mobile service issues comprised 55% of all complaints received by the ministry.
- Telzar, HOT, and Xphone were among the companies with the highest number of consumer complaints.
- Average complaint processing time increased by 9% to 12 working days.
- A new cellular antenna was activated in Gush Etzion to enhance mobile service and emergency response.
A significant number of Israelis have lodged complaints regarding mobile and internet services, leading to substantial refunds and increased scrutiny of telecommunication companies. One customer successfully reclaimed 16,660 shekels after being billed for eight years for two unsolicited phone lines. The Ministry of Communications (Mincom) intervened after the operator failed to respond to the customer's claim and no documentation was found to support the charges.
In 2025, Mincom's efforts resulted in 855,423 shekels being returned to Israeli consumers for issues including service disconnections, incorrect billing, misleading information, and payment for unrendered services. Mobile service accounted for 55% of complaints, internet for 38%, and landline telephony for 3%. The ministry received 7,913 complaints in total, a 9.5% increase from the previous year. Of these, 3,252 were deemed valid, with violations rectified in 1,663 cases.
Companies like Telzar, HOT, and Xphone faced the highest number of complaints. While Mincom processed all submissions, the average resolution time increased by 9% to 12 working days. Approximately 44% of complaints were deemed justified, with nearly half related to mobile services and 45% to internet services. Common grievances included service malfunctions, poor mobile signal quality, refusal to disconnect services, excessive charges, and fiber optic connection problems.
Over 47% of complaints could not be definitively resolved due to a lack of evidence, jurisdictional limitations, or specific dispute details. Specific issues varied by provider: Pelephone, Cellcom, Rami Levy Communications, and Partner customers reported signal quality problems, while HOT Mobile users cited incorrect billing, Wecom users experienced number porting issues, and Xphone users complained about roaming charges.
In related news, Mincom recently inaugurated a new cellular antenna in Gush Etzion, expected to improve mobile connectivity and emergency response times in the area.
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