If I am a tourist injured in a road accident in Israel, who pays my medical costs and compensation?

A visitor is hit by a car crossing a Jerusalem street, ends up in hospital, and the family back home braces for a fight over who pays. In most countries that fight is about proving fault. In Israel it is not. A distinct no-fault statute governs road injuries, and it reaches foreign tourists just as fully as it reaches Israelis.

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Detailed Explanation

The controlling law is the Road Accident Victims Compensation Law 1975 (Chok Pitzuim l'Nifga'ei Te'unot Drachim). It creates a no-fault system for bodily injury caused by the use of a motor vehicle. A person injured in a road accident is entitled to compensation without having to prove that anyone was negligent, which removes the central obstacle that makes personal-injury claims slow and contested elsewhere. The entitlement turns on the injury arising from the use of a vehicle, not on who was to blame, and it is not conditioned on the victim's nationality or residence. A tourist injured in Israel is a road-accident victim under the law like anyone else.

Compensation is funded through compulsory motor insurance. Every vehicle in Israel must carry bituach chova, the mandatory personal-injuries cover, and driving without it is a criminal offence. That insurance stands behind injuries to the driver, the passengers, and third parties such as pedestrians and cyclists. Where the responsible vehicle cannot be identified, for example a hit-and-run, or where it carried no valid insurance, the law channels the claim to a statutory backstop fund called Karnit, so an innocent victim is not left uncompensated simply because the other driver disappeared or broke the insurance rules.

What the law covers is real damage: medical expenses, loss of earning capacity, and non-pecuniary damages for pain and suffering, assessed under the statute's framework rather than at large. For a tourist this matters in two directions. It means Israeli medical treatment arising from the accident can be brought into the claim, and it also interacts with any travel or health insurance the visitor holds, since insurers that pay out may seek to recover against the responsible motor insurer. Getting the sequence right, and not signing away rights early, is where advice pays for itself. A separate point worth flagging: road-accident compensation under this law is generally the exclusive route for the bodily injury, displacing an ordinary negligence claim for the same harm.

For an injured visitor who has since flown home, the claim is run from abroad. The essential steps are securing the police report and the identity and insurer of the vehicle involved, preserving the Israeli hospital and treatment records, and obtaining medical assessments that a claim can be built on. Time limits apply, so the file should be opened well before the general limitation period expires. An Israeli attorney can manage the claim against the motor insurer or Karnit under a power of attorney, coordinating foreign medical evidence and dealing with the insurer directly. Visitors weighing how their own cover fits alongside this should also read our answer on travel insurance and medical care in Israel for non-residents.

In Practice: Under the Road Accident Victims Compensation Law 1975, a tourist injured in a road accident in Israel claims no-fault compensation from the vehicle's compulsory insurer (bituach chova), or from the Karnit fund where the vehicle is uninsured or unidentified. The general limitation period for filing is seven years from the accident under the Prescription Law 1958, and compensation covers medical costs, lost earnings, and pain and suffering. A contested claim commonly takes 1 to 3 years, with medical assessments the decisive evidence.

Key Considerations

• The Road Accident Victims Compensation Law 1975 is no-fault: a victim need not prove negligence.
• It covers anyone injured in a road accident in Israel, including foreign tourists, drivers, passengers, and pedestrians.
• Compensation comes from the vehicle's compulsory insurer, or from the Karnit fund for uninsured or unidentified vehicles.
• Covered damages include medical costs, loss of earnings, and pain and suffering under the statutory framework.
• A claim can be run from abroad, but the police report, insurer details, and Israeli medical records must be preserved early.

When to Consult a Lawyer

This question typically requires professional legal advice when:

• Your injuries are serious or lasting and the compensation figure will turn on medical assessments.
• The vehicle was uninsured or fled the scene and the claim must go through the Karnit fund.
• Your own travel or health insurer has paid out and there is a question of recovery against the Israeli motor insurer.

A qualified Israeli attorney should open the file before the limitation period runs and before you settle with any insurer, because the road-accident route is generally the exclusive one for the injury.

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Speak With an Israeli Attorney

We represent foreign visitors injured in Israeli road accidents, pursuing no-fault compensation against the vehicle's insurer or the Karnit fund and coordinating overseas medical evidence, all managed under power of attorney so you need not return to Israel.

Contact us for a confidential initial consultation.