ADA Website Accessibility Lawsuit: online car rental service
Plaintiff's Firm: CENTER FOR DISABILITY ACCESS
Case Summary
Plaintiff Andres Gomez filed a federal lawsuit against an online car rental service in the United States District Court for the Central District of California on August 14, 2020. The complaint alleges that the car rental service's website is not fully accessible to visually-impaired individuals, violating the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and California's Unruh Civil Rights Act.
The complaint details several critical accessibility barriers encountered by Mr. Gomez, including images lacking text equivalents readable by screen reader software (SRS), navigation headings missing contextual information for keyboard and SRS users, and navigation elements not being properly labeled as headings. Additionally, the website contains script and form elements not identified with functional text readable by SRS, and the webpage visualization exhibits impermissibly low contrast between background and foreground elements, making navigation difficult and confusing for screen reader users.
This case highlights the ongoing legal risks for businesses operating digital platforms, especially those providing public accommodations. Failure to ensure that websites comply with recognized accessibility standards, such as WCAG 2.0 AA, can lead to costly litigation, injunctions, and significant statutory damages, underscoring the imperative for digital accessibility across all industries.
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Case Q&A
What specific WCAG violations is this online car rental service accused of?
The online car rental service is accused of having images without text equivalents, navigation headings lacking contextual information for keyboard and screen reader users, improperly labeled navigation elements, script and form elements not identified with functional text readable by screen readers, and impermissibly low color contrast.
Who filed this lawsuit, and which law firm?
This lawsuit was filed by Andres Gomez, represented by the law firm CENTER FOR DISABILITY ACCESS.
What legal risk does this create?
This creates a legal risk for other businesses that operate online platforms, particularly those in public accommodation sectors, as it demonstrates that non-compliance with digital accessibility standards can lead to federal lawsuits, potential injunctions, and statutory damages under the ADA and state civil rights acts.