A request to certify a class action lawsuit has been filed in the Tel Aviv District Court against Netiv HaChesed, a Haredi supermarket chain operating dozens of branches in Haredi cities and neighborhoods across Israel, Kikar HaShabbat reported Friday.
The petitioner alleges that the chain violated Israel's Consumer Protection Law by failing to display unit prices and failing to mark the country of origin on a range of products sold in its stores, including spices, legumes, dried fruit, grains and other goods. According to the filing, the absence of unit pricing prevents consumers from making accurate price comparisons between similar products, while missing origin labels deprives them of information relevant to making an informed purchase.
The personal claim is set at 14,000 shekels, while the scope of the proposed class action is estimated at more than 2.5 million shekels. The petitioner argues that the alleged violations are not isolated incidents but reflect an ongoing pattern across the chain's branches, giving it a commercial advantage at the expense of consumers. The filing cites violations of the Consumer Protection Law, its accompanying regulations, the Class Actions Law, the Torts Ordinance and the Unjust Enrichment Law.
The petitioner is asking the court to certify the case as a class action, order the chain to correct the alleged deficiencies, halt the practices in question and compensate affected members of the class.
Netiv HaChesed operates more than 70 branches nationwide. As of Friday, the chain had not filed a response to the claims, which remain unproven and have not been examined by the court.
