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Uber wheelchair accessible vehicles class action lawsuits overview:
- Who: A federal judge in California has sided with Uber over claims brought by Scott Crawford, Francis Falls and Stephan Namisnak.
- Why: The judge disagreed with allegations that Uber was violating the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by not providing riders with wheelchair-accessible vehicles in New Orleans and Jackson, Mississippi.
- Where: The class action lawsuits were filed in California federal court.
A federal judge in California has sided with Uber over claims the ride-hailing company should be required to provide its riders in New Orleans and Jackson, Mississippi, with vehicles that are wheelchair accessible.
The judge ruled Uber was not obligated to supply wheelchair-accessible vehicles and the trio of riders behind two class action lawsuits filed against the company had not established it would be a reasonable request to make.
Instead, the judge determined forcing Uber to provide wheelchair-accessible vehicles would ultimately be both ineffective and costly since it would have to use a commercial operator to obtain them.
The contracts Uber would need to have to obtain the wheelchair accessible vehicles would cost the company $800,000 per year in New Orleans and $550,000 in Jackson, according to the judge.
“Notably, these costs would not even provide a level of service equal to the level of service available on the UberX platform,” the judge wrote in his order and opinion.
Cost of Uber implementing wheelchair-accessible vehicle service too high, judge says
The judge did note that being able to provide riders with wheelchair-accessible vehicles would have the potential to “transform lives;” however, he determined the high cost to Uber would limit access to them, regardless.
“The anticipated cost here is too high for the limited service that would result, making the proposed modification unreasonable,” the judge said.
Scott Crawford, Francis Falls and Stephan Namisnak — all of whom use motorized wheelchairs — claimed Uber was in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act by not providing them with wheelchair-accessible vehicles.
Uber, meanwhile, argued the demand for wheelchair-accessible vehicles is not high and that forcing the company to acquire or subsidize a fleet of them would be both unreasonable and costly.
Uber agreed to pay $2.2 million earlier this month to resolve similar claims that it discriminated against passengers with disabilities by not adjusting its “wait time fee” for them in the event they take longer than allowed to enter a vehicle.
Have you not been able to gain access to a wheelchair-accessible vehicle when using Uber? Let us know in the comments!
The plaintiffs are represented by Garret DeReus and Andrew D. Bizer of Bizer & DeReus LLC, William B. Most of Aqua Terra Aeris Law Group and Karla Gilbride of Public Justice PC.
The Uber wheelchair accessible vehicles class action lawsuits are Namisnak, et al. v. Uber Technologies Inc., Case No. 3:17-cv-06124, and Crawford, et al. v. Uber Technologies Inc., Case No. 3:17-cv-02664, both in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.
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4 thoughts onUber not violating ADA by not having wheelchair accessible vehicles in every city, judge says
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that judge is a tool let him stand out in the rain in the middle of the night while disabled after having to go to the hospital and no one will pick up a wheel chair .He or she should be ashamed of themselves but they are just mouthpieces for the rich and not for the people !
I took a disabled lady to New Orleans and there was no access for handicapped. It was very difficult to get her from the airport to the hotel. We made it but I had to practically lift her into the van and it was very painful for both of us. She ended up staying in the room unless we walked as I pushed her through New Orleans. I made the best of it and she had a good time but I feel handicapped people should be able to enjoy as much as they can in life. They are not dead. How will we feel when and if we get to that point in life?
I could never get it over when needed because I am in a wheelchair. I would love to take it over to go to family events that are after hours. Or order an Uber when my grandchild was born, I was unable to be there. Also on the app you cannot tell if it’s a handicap accessible vehicle.