Most people do not want to think about the most difficult moments in life that are related to the death of a relative, so many times they are not aware of their rights.
Recently, a request was filed for a class action against four religious councils - Ashkelon, Ashdod, Karmiel and Kiryat Yam - in the Administrative Affairs Court in Beer Sheva, for an estimated amount of NIS 3.6 million.
In the application it is claimed that during a burial that should be free, an illegal collection is made in connection with the burial or the foundations of a tombstone.
The claim is that this is an act that is against the law, the report of the State Comptroller, the Labor and Welfare Committee of the Knesset and the guiding laws of the courts.
It should be noted that the religious councils do not collect costs from the families, but tombstone contractors are the ones who do.
The application states that the councils demanded or received payment in connection with the burial and the construction of the tombstone, directly or indirectly, taking advantage of the plight of mourners in their most difficult time.
According to the application, "the respondents did so in violation of the law, the regulations, the respondents' licenses, their contracts with the National Insurance Institute and the instructions of the Ministry of Religious Services, as a matter of policy."
The application claims that those who submitted the application for the class action are relatives of the deceased, who took care of bringing their loved ones to the burial.
In this context, each of them separately applied to these religious councils in order to perform the burial services for them free of charge, in accordance with their right under the law, but the respondents demanded from them payment for the "foundation of her condition" (or any other term they found for it), in complete violation of the law, either by themselves and whether through another.
Attorney Eliezer Rodin, who represents the religious council in Karmiel, said in response: "The religious council in Karmiel respects the families in their difficult time, and acts with great sensitivity when it comes to handling the burials and funerals of the deceased.
"The staff of the cemetery and the administrative staff in Karmiel emphasize the dignity of the person, the deceased and their loved ones at the most difficult time in their lives, and treat them with respect, sensitivity and understanding. The religious council acted according to the regulations, and did not collect the fee of 600 shekels from the bereaved families. The collection is done legally by the tombstone contractors." .
The Kiryat Yam Religious Council stated: "The council has received the statement of claim. It is studying it, and will respond to the substance of the allegations in the court proceedings."
The Ashkelon Religious Council stated: "The Religious Council works according to the instructions of the regulators (that is, the Ministry of Religious Services and the National Insurance). Therefore, the Council never collects and has never collected money for the foundations of its state from families."
The Ashdod Religious Council stated: "The request will be studied in depth."
were we wrong
We will fix it!
If you found an error in the article, we would appreciate it if you shared it with us
