Construction site damage from a security incident

A construction site owner who was hit by a rocket may file a property tax claim. Compensation Fund employees will arrive at the site, conduct an assessment and valuation, and based on the conclusions, determine the scope of compensation.

Inventory and equipment will be compensated according to the market value of the equipment at the time of the injury, after proof of ownership. The plaintiff is required to present a list of inventory and equipment, relevant documents, financial statements, income tax certificates, account management certificates, and more. Please note that according to the Tax Authority website, " Equipment, inventory, waste, or any other object found in the business may not be removed without prior coordination with an appraiser from the Compensation Fund."

Important: The owner of the construction site may present an appraiser's opinion on his behalf, and it is advisable to do so. Experience shows that a private appraisal on behalf of the injured party may well represent his interests faithfully before the property tax appraiser, and be reflected in the final result.

Some numbers: As of October 15th and according to data from the Property Tax Compensation Fund, approximately 6,400 buildings in Israel have been damaged since the beginning of the war. Approximately 80 assessment teams are deployed in the field. Approximately 20 of them are in the center and the rest in the southern region. In the Tel Aviv metropolitan areas, approximately 2,100 buildings have been damaged so far.

Is the contractor/developer entitled to indirect damages?

According to Israeli law, there may be entitlement to compensation for indirect damages when the injured party can prove a causal connection between the damage caused and the war activities. Property tax regulations allow this only for small towns, but experience shows that sometimes the state specifically extends the entitlement to towns in additional areas. It seems that this time there is a high probability that the state will reach into its pocket and compensate businesses in the economy for the paralysis of activity and the loss of income from the situation.