CAL to Refund 4 Million Shekels to Customers: Who Is Eligible for Compensation
The settlement approved in court determines that CAL customers who previously received a temporary exemption from card fees may be eligible for a refund for one month. Who is included in the group, how much money will they receive, and what has changed since then?
The Central District Court in Lod approved this week a settlement agreement in a class action lawsuit against the company CAL, under which the company will pay 4 million shekels to customers. The lawsuit, filed in 2020, dealt with the way CAL notified customers about the end of a temporary exemption from card fees. The claim stated that the notice was not provided separately and clearly enough, but was instead included within the monthly statements.
According to a report in "TheMarker", the proceedings concerned customers with non-bank cards from CAL who received a temporary benefit on card fees between 2015 and 2021, and began to be charged fees after the benefit period ended. As part of the settlement, it was determined that customers whose benefit ended between 2015 and 2019 would be eligible for a refund of 50% of the monthly card fee, while customers whose benefit ended between 2019 and 2021 would receive a refund of about 90%.
The refund under the settlement is limited to one month only and amounts to approximately 15 shekels. The agreement assumes that after a month in which a card fee was charged, the customer is already aware that the benefit has ended and can act accordingly or choose to move to a competitor. The settlement also includes compensation for the class action plaintiff and legal fees for her counsel at a total rate of 25% of the restitution amount, plus VAT, with 23.5% of the amount to be paid to the lawyer.
During the proceedings, it was noted that in 2021, CAL changed the way it presents notices about the end of benefits following another class action lawsuit. Since then, the notice still appears in the statements rather than in a separate document, but it is presented more prominently: at the top of the statement page, it is noted that an important notice appears at the end, and the notice itself is displayed in a designated area, inside a highlighted box, in a different color and larger font. In accordance with the approved settlement, starting from 2021, the relevant group of customers has no cause of action.
The class action was filed with the claim that CAL is subject to an increased duty of good faith and that the end of a card fee benefit is a material change in the terms of the engagement, requiring a separate, clear, and highlighted notice. CAL argued in response that the notice provided within the statements was clear and prominent.
