Wild Boar Damage: Obtaining Compensation and a Free Cease and Desist Letter.

Wild boars roaming in urban areas constitute a dangerous public nuisance, particularly prevalent in the Carmel coastal settlements. Beyond the fear of attack, they cause significant property damage and sometimes even personal injury. Learn about your rights to compensation and download a sample warning letter for free here.

Wild Boars – Who is Liable Under the Law?

According to law, the municipal authority is responsible for regulating the presence of wild boars in urban areas. Section 247(b) of the Municipalities Ordinance states: “The municipality shall regulate or prevent the keeping of pigs, regulate the keeping of other animals so that their keeping does not constitute a public nuisance or a health hazard, and regulate or prevent the grazing or passage of animals.”

According to court rulings, the municipalities’ duty is broad and includes, inter alia:

1. Erecting appropriate signage warning of the presence of wild boars and providing driving instructions.
2. Installing fences to prevent crossing roads and urban pathways.
3. Culling the wild boar population through legal hunting by an authorized party (the Nature and Parks Authority).
4. Preventing proximity to residential areas; removing waste and garbage (which attracts wild boars).
5. Securing garbage bins (which are also a significant attraction for wild boars).
6. Enforcing municipal supervision to ensure the proper distribution of food to stray cats.

If the municipality fails to fulfill its duty, it commits a tortious act of negligence (Section 35 of the Torts Ordinance). While Section 35 refers to the default of a “person,”

Section 4 of the Interpretation Law defines a person as also including a “corporation,” and Section 7 of the Municipalities Ordinance states that a municipality is a corporation. Accordingly, the municipality can be held liable for the tort of negligence due to an urban hazard in the form of a wild boar.

This issue raises similar questions regarding mosquito bites carrying the West Nile virus, and bites and damages from fire ants.

Typical Damages from Wild Boars

Most tort claims in this matter are filed due to damage to vehicles. Wild boars run onto the road, causing the driver to swerve and hit another vehicle or stationary objects nearby. Sometimes the driver does not have time to brake and hits the wild boar directly.

In addition, many residents have filed small claims due to various other circumstances: damage to residential plumbing; sanitation nuisance (overturning garbage cans that the municipality failed to secure as required by law); damage to agricultural crops; physical injury to animals, including pets; and, of course, physical injury to humans (either directly or indirectly).

It should be noted that animals are considered “property” under the law (chattels). Therefore, if a wild boar attacks a pet, the owner can file a claim alleging that the municipality damaged their property, just as they would if a boar had damaged their vehicle.

What Documents Should You Gather to Receive Compensation?

Each case is unique, but these are the common documents to gather to claim compensation from the municipality:

1. Documentation of the location of the incident. If, for example, the damage occurred while driving a vehicle: video footage from a car camera or photographs of the scene.
2. Documentation of the damages. In the case of vehicle damage: photographs of the damage to the vehicle and, if there are bodily injuries, there is no need to include photographs of the physical injury; it suffices to include a medical expert’s opinion on the damage caused. If the damage involves plumbing or a sanitation nuisance – photos of the location and damage (also in real-time video) will be very helpful.
3. Relevant expert opinion. For vehicle damage, include an appraiser’s opinion assessing the damage to the vehicle. If you have sued the vehicle’s insurance company, show proof of the amount received from it and demand the difference (if any) from the municipality. For bodily injury, include medical documents, but a medical expert’s opinion establishing a direct link between the injury and the bodily harm is desirable. For example, if a person claims they suffered a heart attack as a result of an encounter with a wild boar, but it turns out that they have a known heart condition, it will be difficult to claim a direct link. If an animal was damaged, veterinary documents can be included.
4. Receipts and expenses. Any expenses incurred by the injured party since and as a result of the damage. Costs of repairing the damage; payment to appraisers or medical experts; travel expenses to medical centers; proof of loss of workdays or income from a business; etc.

How to Receive Compensation?

Before rushing to file a claim, it is advisable to send a warning letter before initiating legal proceedings to the municipality. The warning letter should detail the incident and state a compensation demand for settlement purposes only. See a sample warning letter for free download here. You can attach the supporting documents you have gathered to this letter.

If the municipality does not respond or refuses to compensate you for the agreed-upon amount, you can file a tort claim against it. Usually, the damages are not high, and it is usually advisable to file a small claims lawsuit. As of January 2024, you can file a small claims lawsuit for up to NIS 38,900.

Sometimes, claimants whose claim amount is higher prefer to “give up” a little to file a small claims lawsuit (rather than a regular civil lawsuit). The reason is clear: filing a small claims lawsuit is a significantly cheaper and faster process. The fee is less than half the fee of a regular procedure.

In addition, there are no attorney fees (as this is a proceeding conducted without attorneys for either party). The proceeding itself is conducted with greater flexibility by the judge, who will usually favor the ordinary citizen and try to help them. According to official data from the judiciary, the judgment is usually given after one hearing and within an average of 4.8 months. This is in contrast to a regular civil procedure, which can take years.

Filing a Small Claims Lawsuit Due to Wild Boar Damage

As of January 2024, small claims lawsuits are limited to NIS 38,900. Therefore, if several claimants wish to file a lawsuit together, the claim amount is limited to this ceiling.

With Dino’s system, you can produce a small claims lawsuit online from any device, using a smart, dynamic questionnaire pre-defined by a lawyer and tailored to each type of small claims lawsuit.

The system is an innovative Israeli development that overcomes the outdated system offered by the judiciary. In addition to being able to produce the lawsuit online, the system allows you to upload files from any device and translate them into an organized appendix key.

While using the system, there is a help wizard that explains procedural questions that claimants usually get tangled up in. In short: the average usage time for producing a small claims lawsuit is about 14 minutes. At the end of the short process, a small claims lawsuit perfectly adapted to the instructions of the court administration is automatically produced.

You can also purchase a filing service, thus providing a complete package in which the lawsuit is produced, the court fee is transferred, and a legal courier performs the delivery to the court. All the client has to do is wait to receive notification that their lawsuit has been filed, and from there they will manage the case independently.

Read more about producing and filing a small claims lawsuit with Dino’s smart system.