Blind Customer Files ADA Class Action Against Kay Jewelers

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A class action lawsuit accusing Kay Jewelers Inc. of failing to provide point-of-sale devices accessible to customers who are blind and therefore violating the Americans with Disabilities Act, as well as state law, was filed in California federal court this week.

Lead plaintiff Kenneth Smith alleges in his ADA class action lawsuit that Kay Jewelers Inc. (also known as Sterling Jewelers) does not provide point-of sale, or POS, devices that are accessible to people who are blind. According to the class action lawsuit, when Smith, who is blind, visited a Kay Jewelers located in California and attempted to make a purchase using his debit card, he was unable to use the POS device offered by the store without divulging his PIN number to the store clerk.

According to the Kay Jewelers class action lawsuit, “To make a debit card purchase using [Kay Jewelers’] POS Devices, a customer must enter their Personal Identification Number (‘PIN’). However, because a blind or visually impaired individual cannot discern the numerical references displayed on the keypad of the POS Device, said individual does not have the ability to independently make a debit purchase. Instead, the blind or visually impaired consumer must divulge their PIN number in order to complete a debit transaction.”

Kay Jewelers’ “use of flat touch screen POS Devices discriminates against blind and visually impaired consumers in violation of the ADA, California Financial Code § 13082, The Unruh Civil Rights Act and The California Disabled Persons Act,” the ADA class action lawsuit alleges. “POS Devices with tactilely discernible keypad surfaces-which are independently usable by a blind or visually impaired individual-are readily available and in fact used by a substantial percentage of retail merchants.”

Smith seeks to represent a nationwide Class of visually impaired Kay Jewelers customers who have or plan to make debit card purchases at the store. He seeks unspecified damages, attorneys’ fees, and a court order that would require Kay Jewelers to make changes to its POS devices to comply with the ADA and California code.

This class action lawsuit joins several other lawsuits filed in recent months over card payment machines that are not accessible to the visually impaired. Retail stores including Apple Inc., Office Depot Inc., Hobby Lobby Stores Inc., Build-A-Bear Workshop Inc., and Express Inc. have been hit with ADA lawsuits over the past several years. About a year ago, Kay Jewelers was hit with a similar ADA class action lawsuit in Pennsylvania federal court over the retailer’s point-of-sale system.

Past ADA lawsuits focused on accessible technology have included whether retail websites must be compatible with screen-reading software used by the visually impaired to browse the Internet and whether ATMs must be furnished with braille buttons and audio interfaces. According to recent court holdings, the ADA must be construed in the plaintiffs’ favor in those cases.

Smith is represented by Michael Harrison of The Santa Clarita Law Firm.

The Kay Jewelers ADA Class Action Lawsuit is Kenneth Smith v. Sterling Jewelers Inc., Case No. 2:14-cv-08615, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.