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

Fri Sep 12 16:35:48 UTC 2014

Yes, Cindy, exactly what I was planning to say.  How on earth do you
not notice that your dog was placed in the trunk?  I have been
attempting to think of ways the handler could have missed it...  They
were traveling with others and got distracted...  They got a phone
call...  An emergency...  But that leash and dog are like attachments,
extensions.  I panic even when my dog's leash is taken from my hand by
accident.  I just can't imagine how that could have happened.

Even at the guide dog school this summer they told us to use little
cards with the ADA printed on them rather than our ID cards.  I think
once I gave it to a place to copy because I had brought in the first
service dog they had ever had in their office, and they wanted it on
file.  I actually thought this was kind of cool...  I think I even
explained to them that this wasn't what I used to enter businesses.

Valery, I appreciate your post.  I think that until there is a more
systematic method of certifying dog trainers, this problem will
remain.

On 9/12/14, The Pawpower Pack via nagdu <nagdu at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> My local paratransit asked me to put my dog ! the back of an SUV. Which is
> not a trunk, but is still not acceptible at all, and I said that, so they
> drove away, saying that both myself and the dog could not fit, which is
> horse puckie.
> So I wrote a complaint, and now the drivers just settle for being vocal and
> nasty because they have to take me and because they know I'm deaf and can't
> hear them, but other riders do.
> I have written complaints to both the DOT and the company itself, and
> nothing happens.  So I take fixed route where the drivers aren't terrible.
>
>  Rox and the kitchen Bitches:
> Mill'E, Laveau, Soleil
> Pawpower4me at gmail.com
> Sent from my iPhone
>
>> On Sep 12, 2014, at 9:46 AM, Larry D Keeler via nagdu <nagdu at nfbnet.org>
>> wrote:
>>
>> Exactly Cindy! Although other things are involved, they did take the dog.
>> I've had folks complain and take us or not. I've had folks take me and
>> complain all the way! But as of yet, I've never had someone even suggest
>> we put the dog in the boot! Well, maybe some of us teasing but they
>> usually decide that's where I should ride and my dog can ride up front. Up
>> here in Ann Arbor Uber has been in enough trouble for not taking folks in
>> chairs or those with dogs. Putting a dog in the trunk is not an option nor
>> is taking her away from me.
>> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Cindy Ray via nagdu"
>> <nagdu at nfbnet.org>
>> To: "Ginger Kutsch" <Ginger at ky2d.com>; "NAGDU Mailing List,the National
>> Association of Guide Dog Users" <nagdu at nfbnet.org>
>> Sent: Friday, September 12, 2014 8:45 AM
>> Subject: Re: [nagdu] Uber sued for allegedly refusing rides to the blind
>> andputting a dog in the trunk
>>
>>
>> Well, there was something in this article that bothered me a little, other
>> than the sloppy editing. This is what it is:
>>
>>> 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.
>> First off, this whole thing is deplorable. The company is public even if
>> they use contractors. They are offering a service to the public, so this
>> is wrong. It is totally inhumane to put a dog in the trunk. But how did
>> the blind individual not realize before they even left the premises that
>> the dog had been placed in the trunk? Did the person relinquish the dog to
>> the driver? Since I am coming into this discussion late and haven't read
>> much, I may have missed something, so I'm sorry if I did, but that bothers
>> me a lot. This is definitely an issue that we need to pursue, and I mean
>> the whole thing, not just the problem I mentioned.
>>
>> Cindy
>>
>>> On Sep 11, 2014, at 7:33 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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>>
>>
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-- 
Julie McG
National Association of Guide dog Users board member,  National
Federation of the Blind performing arts division secretary,
Missouri Association of Guide dog Users President,
and Guiding Eyes for the Blind graduate 2008
"For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that
everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal
life."
John 3:16