Five Guys Class Action Says Website Not Accessible to Blind Users

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Five Guys Enterprises LLC has been hit with a class action lawsuit alleging the hamburger chain’s website does not comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act, making it impossible for blind users to complete a transaction online.

Plaintiff Lucia Marett, who is blind, filed this class action lawsuit, claiming the FiveGuys.com website provides information about the goods, services and programs offered by Five Guys, as well as testimonials praising the company.

“Yet, Fiveguys.com contains thousands of access barriers that make it difficult if not impossible for blind customers to use the website,” the Five Guys class action lawsuit asserts. “In fact, the access barriers make it impossible for blind users to even complete a transaction on the website.”

“Five Guys thus excludes the blind from the full and equal participation in the growing Internet economy that is increasingly a fundamental part of the common marketplace and daily living,” Marett complains in the Five Guys class action lawsuit.

Marett says she visited the Five Guys website intending to purchase a cheeseburger with toppings. However, she found that she was unable to independently navigate the website and complete a transaction. According to the Five Guys class action, she intends to make future purchases using the Five Guys website once the access barriers are removed.

In recent years, assistive computer technology has been developed to help blind people independently access a variety of services online, such as ordering food online for in-store pickup.

Even though this assistive technology is widely available, and is used by many other heavily trafficked websites, Five Guys has reportedly elected to use an exclusively visual interface that bars blind users from using the website without the assistance of a sighted person.

According to the Five Guys class action lawsuit, the company’s failure to use technology that makes the website accessible to blind consumers is a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act, which prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities.

Under the ADA, discrimination includes barriers to independent living and equal opportunity for individuals with disabilities, including barriers created by websites. The Five Guys class action lawsuit also points to New York state law that requires places of public make reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities to access goods, services and facilities.

Marett seeks to represent a nationwide Class of “all legally blind individuals in the United States who have attempted to access Fiveguys.com and as a result have been denied access to the enjoyment of goods and services offered in Five Guys locations,” as well as a subclass of blind New York consumers who were unable to independently use the Five Guys website.

The Five Guys class action lawsuit asserts violations of the ADA, New York State Human Rights Law, New York State Civil Rights Law, New York City Human Rights Law, and asserts a claim for declaratory relief.

Marett is represented by C.K. Lee and Anne Seelig of Lee Litigation Group PLLC.

The Five Guys Website Accessibility Class Action Lawsuit is Lucia Marett v. Five Guys Enterprises LLC, Case No. 1:17-cv-00788, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

UPDATE: On April 7, 2017, Five Guys filed a motion to dismiss the disability discrimination class action lawsuit accusing the company of running an inaccessible website arguing that the requirements of the ADA apply only to physical facilities and not to websites.

UPDATE 2: On July 21, 2017,  a federal judge tossed Five Guy’s motion to dismiss. Five Guys attempted to end the class action by arguing that the ADA does not cover websites but in the court order, the judge explained that Five Guy’s website is in fact covered by the ADA.