[nagdu] Uber sued for allegedly refusing rides to the blind andputting a dog in the trunk

Thu Sep 11 21:00:09 UTC 2014

The goofy thing here is not whether or not its a service animal but who puts 
one in the trunk! I wouldn't do that to my pet! The driver was obviously not 
gouing to handle the situation very well!
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Danielle Burton via nagdu" <nagdu at nfbnet.org>
To: "Abigail Bolling" <violingirl30794 at gmail.com>; "NAGDU Mailing List,the 
National Association of Guide Dog Users" <nagdu at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Thursday, September 11, 2014 11:40 AM
Subject: Re: [nagdu] Uber sued for allegedly refusing rides to the blind 
andputting a dog in the trunk


>I agree with you, but what about those who owner train their dogs?  I went 
>to a school I do have an ID card but if you do owner train your dog you 
>don't have one. They have the same rights as those of us who go through a 
>school. Yes, the cards may avoid a lot of trouble but it's not required by 
>law to have one.
>
> Danielle and Willa
>
>
>> On Sep 11, 2014, at 11:34 AM, Abigail Bolling via nagdu 
>> <nagdu at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>>
>> The problem of explaining  that the dog is a service animal, I know this 
>> may sound harsh, but as far as I know, the service animal schools give 
>> there handlers ID cards for a reason. A lot of Dog users that I know 
>> refuse to carry them, to which my opinion is a lot of situations could 
>> possibly be avoided just by showing an ID card.
>> I know we shouldn't have to show an ID card to make our point and it is 
>> certainly annoying, but sometimes it is just easier to go that extra 
>> stupid step to save a little headache later.
>> Also, I know I said this on another post about this article, but it is 
>> the responsibility of the handler to know where their dog is at all 
>> times, so why did the handler let the dog be taken away from him and 
>> placed in the trunk in the first place.
>> Thanks,
>>
>> Abby and my little Shadow, Jada.
>>
>> Abigail Bolling
>> Wright State University: Social Work
>>
>> "Keep a smile on your face and a song in your heart, and just let the 
>> music play." (Julie Anderson Diamond)
>>
>>> On Sep 11, 2014, at 8:33 AM, Ginger Kutsch via nagdu <nagdu at nfbnet.org> 
>>> wrote:
>>>
>>> Uber sued for allegedly refusing rides to the blind and putting a dog in 
>>> the
>>> trunk
>>>
>>> By Gail Sullivan September 10 Washington Post
>>>
>>> Source:
>>> http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2014/09/10/uber-sued-for-a
>>> llegedly-refusing-rides-to-the-blind-and-putting-a-dog-in-the-trunk/
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> An advocacy group for the blind is suing the app-based ride-sharing 
>>> service
>>> Uber, alleging the company discriminates against passengers with service
>>> dogs.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> The federal civil rights suit filed Tuesday by the California chapter of 
>>> the
>>> National Federation of the Blind cites instances in California and 
>>> elsewhere
>>> when blind Uber customers summoned a car only to be refused a ride once 
>>> the
>>> driver saw them with a service dog. In some cases, drivers allegedly
>>> abandoned blind travelers in extreme weather and charged cancellation 
>>> fees
>>> after denying them rides, the complaint said.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> The complaint filed in a Northern California District Court cites one
>>> instance where a California UberX driver put a service dog in the trunk 
>>> and
>>> refused to pull over when the blind passenger realized where the animal 
>>> was.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> On another occasion a passenger was trying to explain that his dog was 
>>> not a
>>> pet but a service animal when the driver allegedly cursed at him and
>>> accelerated abruptly, nearly injuring the dog and striking the 
>>> passenger's
>>> friend, who is also blind, with an open car door.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> The group said it's aware of more than 30 times blind customers were 
>>> denied
>>> rides in violation of the American with Disabilities Act and California
>>> state law.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> As a result, blind passengers are confronting unexpected delays and 
>>> "face
>>> the degrading experience of being denied a basic service that is 
>>> available
>>> to all other paying customers," the complaint said.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Services such as Uber are quickly supplanting traditional taxis, a 
>>> service
>>> blind people rely on due to the limitations of public transportation.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> The National Federation of the Blind wants Uber to educate its drivers 
>>> about
>>> disability rights and punish the violators in addition to providing a 
>>> way
>>> for disabled passengers to immediately register complaints when they are
>>> refused rides because of service dogs.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> In a statement reported by the San Francisco Examiner, Uber said its 
>>> policy
>>> is to terminate drivers who refuse to transport service animals. "The 
>>> Uber
>>> app is built to expand access to transportation options for all, 
>>> including
>>> users with visual impairments and other disabilities," the statement 
>>> said.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> However, Uber allegedly told some passengers it can't control what 
>>> drivers
>>> do because they are independent contractors. The company advised them to 
>>> let
>>> drivers know about their animals ahead of time, said the Federation, 
>>> which
>>> filed suit after Uber rejected its request to negotiate a solution.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> The group claims the company closely monitors and controls its drivers 
>>> by
>>> managing payments and services through the app, and by assessing driver
>>> performance based on customer feedback.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> In September 2013,California's Public Utilities Commission classified 
>>> UberX
>>> as a transportation provider because it functions like a taxi dispatch. 
>>> The
>>> commission also said that UberX may not discriminate against the 
>>> disabled,
>>> the Federation noted.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Figuring out whether to treat Uber like a traditional taxi service or
>>> something else is the subject of heated debate across the country. Taxi
>>> services are required by federal law to serve the disabled, even if 
>>> drivers
>>> are independent contractors.
>>>
>>>
>>>
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