hotel

The Hotel Gave Away Your Accessible Room? Practice Self-Advocacy

Candy B. Harrington accessible, ADA, block, complaint, hotel, reservation, room, website October 21, 2024

Have you ever arrived at a hotel, reservation in hand, only to discover that the hotel gave away your accessible room? Or worse yet, been told by a reservation agent that they cannot reserve a specific accessible room for you? It’s not only frustrating, but it’s also illegal in the US under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). But unfortunately it does happen. With that in mind, here’s what you need to know about the law, so you can be a more effective-self advocate.

Block That Room!

As of March 15, 2012, US hotels are required to block accessible guest rooms upon reservation. Blocking means that the property reserves a particular room for a particular guest on a particular date. It’s important to note that a block is not the same thing as a guarantee. A block takes a particular room out of inventory, while a guarantee only refers to the room rate. These regulations are contained in 28 CFR 36.302 (e) (1) in Title III of the ADA (ada.gov/law-and-regs/regulations/title-iii-regulations/#-36302-modifications-in-policies-practices-or-procedures).

Most properties have modern reservation systems that can identify the accessible rooms, and note their features — such as a roll-in shower — so it’s relatively easy to book a specific accessible room online. U.S. properties must also make sure that guests can reserve accessible rooms in the same manner that they can reserve non-accessible rooms. In other words, if you can reserve a non-accessible room on a particular website at midnight, you should also be able to reserve an accessible room in the same manner.

Unfortunately not all properties have their accessible room inventory online or have the ability to block accessible rooms. If you try to reserve a specific accessible room, and the reservation agent says they can’t guarantee that you will get that specific room, then ask to speak to the manager. Then explain your problem and remind the manager that the ADA requires properties to block accessible rooms upon reservation. This will usually get the desired results.

If, on the other hand, the manager doesn’t back down, it’s time to try another property. Frankly if management doesn’t care about access, then it’s highly unlikely that you will even get any type of an accessible room when you arrive. Find another hotel, and then follow through with an ADA Complaint on the first property.

File an ADA Complaint

So when should you file an ADA complaint? Well most definitely file one if a property ever tells you that they can’t block a specific accessible room for you. It’s easy to file an ADA complaint — the form is online at civilrights.justice.gov/report. Make sure and take notes when the event is fresh in your mind, and jot down the names of the people that you dealt with.

It’s also appropriate to file an ADA complaint if you can reserve a standard room on the property website, but are unable to reserve an accessible room there. It’s important to note that you won’t get any compensation as a result of these complaints; however the Depart of Justice may fine the property or require them to update their website or reservation system. In the long run, it will help make things more accessible.

Finally, if you arrive at a property only to find that the hotel gave away your accessible room, you should absolutely file an ADA complaint. The property is also required to find you a comparable room at another property at the same rate. The hotel must pay the difference if the rate at the other property is higher. That doesn’t let them off as far as the Department of Justice is concerned though — take notes and file that ADA complaint when you get home.

Ask The Expert

How to Resolve a Wheelchair-Access Travel Complaint

Candy B. Harrington ACAA, access, ADA, airline, complaint, DOJ, DOT, fine, hotel, law, regulations, wheelchair October 1, 2024

Ever wonder why some people end up with upgrades and refunds whenever they make a wheelchair-access travel complaint, while others walk away with zero compensation? Truth be told, it’s all in the details. Knowing when to complain, how to complain and who to complain to are the keys to not only resolving the issue at hand, but also to receiving adequate compensation for your inconvenience. So the next time you encounter an access-related problem on the road, follow this roadmap for prompt resolution and adequate compensation.

Save Your Trip

The first and foremost rule about making a wheelchair-access travel complaint is to address the problem at hand. If your wheelchair arrives damaged, request a suitable loaner from the airline. If that supposedly accessible bus arrives but has two steps, request an appropriate replacement. If you arrive at a hotel to find that they gave your accessible room away, have them find you one at another property. Try and remedy the access shortfall, so you can salvage your vacation and enjoy the rest of your trip.

Additionally, you should try to prevent further damage. In other words, don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater. For example, if you miss a connection because the airline didn’t have a wheelchair waiting at the gate for you, don’t just throw in the towel. Work with the airline to get on the next available flight, so you can at least enjoy part of your vacation.

Don’t be afraid to address your loss while you are trying to mitigate damages, but don’t put a dollar price tag on it. For example, in the case of the missed connection, if the next available flight isn’t until late at night, don’t be afraid to point out that you are missing a whole day of vacation because of their error. And then ask if perhaps an upgrade is available. Keep in mind, this doesn’t wipe the slate clean, but it will make your travels more comfortable.

It’s also a good idea to jot down a few notes about the incident while it’s fresh in your mind. Write down times, dates and names if you have them. Then, put the notebook away, and don’t dwell on the incident. Enjoy what’s left of your vacation, then address the matter when you return home.

When You Return Home

The time to file an official wheelchair-access travel complaint with a service provider is after you return from your trip. And although every situation is different, here are some tips to help you approach the official complaint process.

Although it’s easy to pick up the phone, your complaint will receive more attention if you put it in writing.
Address the appropriate person. Don’t start with the President or CEO, but instead begin at the bottom and work your way up. You want to be able to show that you followed the company’s complaint procedure in an effort to resolve your accessibility issue.
Keep your complaint letter short and to the point. It should be no longer than one page. Avoid superfluous details and get to the point quickly.
Keep it polite, professional and G-rated. Abstain from vulgarities and name-calling.
Have someone who isn’t emotionally invested in the incident proofread your letter for clarity.
Never threaten to sue or to file an Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) complaint in your initial complaint. This just creates an adversarial situation and makes the matter harder to resolve.
If you are going to quote the law, make sure you know the law.
Make sure and enclose all documentation, including receipts and photos.
Most important, ask for some type of resolution. Don’t be afraid to ask for specific compensation, but be realistic. If you’re reasonable with your request, most companies will be generous in their response.

Make it Official

You should also file an official ADA or Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA) complaint when you return home. This can be done in addition to your complaint with the provider, and even if you received compensation from them. This type of a complaint won’t get you anything personally, but it may help effect change.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Department of Transportation (DOT) look for patterns, and the number of complaints against individual companies. If they see a lot of a certain type of complaint, they can issue fines and directives to help avoid future access-related failures. And that in turn may lead to better compliance in the future.

Plus it’s pretty easy to file an official wheelchair-access travel complaint.

If your issue involves travel on a US airline anywhere in the world, or on a foreign airline on a flight to or from the US, then you can file an ACAA complaint. Details about the complaint process can be found at www.transportation.gov/airconsumer/complaints-alleging-discriminatory-treatment-against-disabled-travelers. And the complaint form is located at secure.dot.gov/air-travel-complaint. It’s also a good idea to check out this primer (emerginghorizons.com/the-disabled-air-travelers-bill-of-rights) on your basic rights under the ACAA before you file a complaint.

If your issue involves physical access at a hotel, attraction, restaurant, outdoor area or venue in the United States, then you can file an ADA complaint. Information about an ADA complaint can be found at www.ada.gov/file-a-complaint. And the online form is located at civilrights.justice.gov/report.

Filing an official complaint is the final step in the process. And again, although it won’t benefit you personally, it can help to make the world a more accessible place.

Resource

Accessible Poland Tours

Candy B. Harrington Auschwitz, Europe, hotel, Krakow, medical equipment, Poland, rental, tours, transportation, wheelchair, wheelchair-accessible, Zakopane September 30, 2024

HansenHimself, CC BY 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0, via Wikimedia Commons — Street in Kraków, Poland

Based in Krakow, Active Poland offers a number of accessible Poland tours for wheelchair-users and slow walkers. The customized Krakow tours can include everything from a stroll around town, to a museum hopping itinerary, and even attending concerts and festivals. All accessible tours are conducted in a wheelchair-accessible van with seating for one wheelchair-user and five other passengers.

Other tours that are doable for wheelchair-users and slow walkers include excursions to Auschwitz-Birkenau, the Bochnia Salt Mine, Zakopane and the John Paul II Trail. Active Poland can also book accessible accommodations and assist with restaurant and nightlife suggestions. Rental wheelchairs and stair lifts are also available. For more information on Active Poland accessible offerings, visit poland-active.com/en/Trips/Trips-For-Handicapped-In-Krakow,ig.

Ask The Expert

Are Hotels Required to Provide Wheelchair Accessible Airport Shuttles?

Candy B. Harrington accessible, ADA, airport, complaint, DOJ, equivalent, free, hotel, shuttle, transfer, transportation September 10, 2024

Shuttle Bus

Recently I flew to Los Angeles, and although the hotel I stayed at had a free airport shuttle, it was not wheelchair-accessible. I asked the driver and he said that they didn’t have any wheelchair-accessible airport shuttles, and that I should take a taxi or an Uber. It seemed a bit unfair for me to have to pay for transfers, while others got them for free. Are airport shuttles required to be wheelchair-accessible under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)? If so, what can I do if I encounter one that lacks wheelchair access?

The ADA and Wheelchair-Accessible Airport Shuttles

In a word, yes. If a hotel provides free shuttle service it’s also required to provide an equivalent accessible service under Title III of the ADA (ada.gov/topics/title-iii/). Equivalent is the key word here, so for example if passengers routinely wait 20 minutes for an airport shuttle, then wheelchair-accessible airport shuttles must arrive in the same time frame.

That doesn’t mean that hotels have to own their own shuttles though. They just have to provide the equivalent service. For example, a small hotel can share an accessible shuttle with other properties, but they must offer equivalent service as detailed above. Properties can also opt to send accessible taxis to pick up passengers, instead of purchasing and maintaining wheelchair-accessible airport shuttles. And finally they can alternately opt to reimburse guests for their accessible taxi or Uber fares.

When Things Go Wrong

Although equivalent service means that disabled guests will get the same service as non-disabled guests, a little advance planning can go a long way to making this a reality. First and foremost, don’t wait until you arrive at the airport to inquire about the availability of wheelchair-accessible hotel shuttles. Call the hotel in advance of your trip to confirm that they have the appropriate vehicles — and that they are actually operational.

If the hotel employee you are talking with says that they don’t have any wheelchair-accessible airport shuttles, then ask to speak to the manager. Usually managers know the law, and after you point out that wheelchair-accessible shuttle service is required under the ADA, then they will start to work to find a solution. Of course this solution may be that the hotels provides an accessible taxi or pays for your Uber, but that’s an acceptable solution under the law.

On the other hand if the manager balks at your request, it’s best to find another property. You can’t strong arm someone into adhering to the law, and you don’t want to arrive at the airport only to find out that there’s no way to get to your hotel. Give your money to a property that does follow the law and will be able to accommodate you.

Of course, don’t forget the property that didn’t accommodate you. They broke the law and they deserve to be reported to the Department of Justice (DOJ). It’s easy to do too — just complete this simple online form (civilrights.justice.gov/report) to file an ADA complaint. You won’t receive any compensation as the result of filing an ADA complaint, but it will help effect change. And that helps make everything more accessible in the long run.

Blog/ Know Before You Go

How To Tell if You’re Really in a Wheelchair-Accessible Hotel Room

Candy B. Harrington ADA, complaint, computer, grab bars, hotel, manager, mistake, regulations, roll-in shower, room June 23, 2024

Thanks to modern technology it’s now possible to share your travel photos with friends and family with just a few swipes and a tap or two. And I absolutely love seeing those smiling faces enjoying cruises, beaches and luxury resorts. But lately I’ve also been seeing another kind of travel post – it usually features a photo of an obviously inaccessible room, with the caption “Really? This is a wheelchair-accessible hotel room?”

And the truth is, well, maybe it isn’t.

How Does This Happen?

I’ve looked at thousands of wheelchair-accessible hotel rooms over my career, and I’ve seen just about every kind of access faux-paus you can imagine; however I’ve also had more than a few managers take me to view a supposed “accessible room” only to discover that it wasn’t. So how does that happen? According to many a red-faced hotel manager, “Somehow the rooms type was entered into the computer incorrectly.”

And although this seems like a minor computer error it can wreck havoc on travelers who need a wheelchair-accessible hotel room. Think about it for a minute. You reserve an accessible room, and because the inaccessible room is coded wrong that’s the room you get. Even worse, when you open the door and discover the lack of access and report it to the front desk, the clerk continues to insist that you ARE in an accessible room. Why? Because the computer says so. And believe me, it’s darn near impossible to convince a rank-and-file employee that the computer is wrong.

Clues That You Aren’t in a Wheelchair-Accessible Hotel Room

Although access features can and do vary from property to property, there are a few clues that you may have been incorrectly assigned to a standard room, rather than a wheelchair-accessible hotel room (in the US). Here are a few tip-offs.

Check the bathroom. Although access features may vary in the shower or tub, check out the toilet area. Are there grab bars by the toilet? If not, you may well be in a standard room, as that’s one access feature that is seldom missed.

Is the roll-in shower really a low step shower? Many hotels have replaced their tub/shower combinations with low-step showers in their standard rooms. Look inside the shower – if the only access feature you see is a set of grab bars, then you may be in a standard room. In this day and age even standard rooms have shower grab bars for safety, so that by itself doesn’t really indicate you are in an accessible room. Look for a hand-held showerhead.

It’s also important to note that under the Americans with Disabilities Act, accessible rooms can have either a roll-in shower a tub/shower combination or a transfer-type shower. In fact properties with 50 or fewer rooms aren’t required to have an accessible room with a roll-in shower. That said, if your tub/shower combination only has grab bars, and does not include a hand-held showerhead and some type of shower bench, you may be in a standard room.

Next, look out in the hallway. Do you see any rooms marked with the wheelchair pictogram? Are there any that have lowered peepholes? These are sure signs of an accessible room. If some rooms have them, but your room lacks them, it may be a sign that you are in a standard room.

How to Remedy the Situation

Of course if your room is listed incorrectly in the inventory, you won’t get much satisfaction from the front desk. You will have to go higher. Ask to speak to the manager. Ask the manager what features their wheelchair-accessible rooms have. Tell him that you are supposedly in a wheelchair-accessible room, but your room does not have those features. Then show him photos of the room.

And then perhaps suggest that this room was entered into the inventory incorrectly.

Chances are if this is the case, the manager will find you another room – one that is truly accessible. Of course there’s always the chance that there won’t be any accessible rooms available; in which case you should ask to be accommodated at a nearby property. After all, you did book an accessible room, and the mistake wasn’t your fault.

Granted this is a time consuming – and somewhat frustrating — process, so go ahead and ask to be compensated for your time. You may get some free points or maybe even a free night. In the end, managers want happy customers, so don’t be afraid to ask for whatever you feel you deserve.

Know Before You Go

Emergency Medical Travel — Where Do You Stay When a Loved One is Hospitalized?

Candy B. Harrington accommodations, ambulance, emergency, emergency room, hotel, medical, overnight, travel March 1, 2024

Whenever the word “travel” is mentioned, visions of luxury hotels, family vacations, road trips and maybe even cruises spring to mind. And for that type of travel adventure, advance planning and copious research is essential for anyone with access needs. But there is another type of travel — one that comes around somewhat unexpectedly — where it’s not so easy to make advance plans. It’s called emergency medical travel.

Emergency medical travel may be necessary in the blink of an eye, as you never know when unforeseen medical issues can arise. Where do you stay when a loved one is transported hundreds of miles away from home with a life threatening medical condition? Unfortunately that’s something most folks – myself included – don’t make plans for in advance. That said, it certainly deserves some forethought, especially if you’re a wheelchair-user or slow walker who requires accessible overnight accommodations. Think about it for a moment – what would you do if an unexpected medical emergency befell a loved one and you had to travel with them to seek medical attention?

It All Began With an Ambulance Ride

My story is a pretty typical emergency medical travel saga. My husband required treatment in our local emergency room, and before we knew it we were transported by ambulance to a hospital staffed with the specialists he required, over an hour away. I had the forethought to grab my phone charger, but other than that all I had were the clothes on my back.

The first night was a blur. I slept – or tried to sleep – in a chair beside my husband in the Intensive Care Unit. Suffice it to say, it was a very long night. The next morning a caring nurse asked if I had a place to stay, and I said no. She then referred me the hospital social worker, who connected me to Walden House (kh.org/family-support-services/hospitality-center/).

Walden House is part of the Ronald Mc Donald House Charities of the Inland Northwest; and they offer affordable overnight lodging to people who have loved ones undergoing treatment at Kootenai Health Center in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. It’s just a half-mile from the main hospital building, with free shuttle service back and forth. And the guest rooms are large, comfortable and private; and they even have a closet filled with toiletries. Add in a community kitchen, a spacious great room with a fireplace, and a patio with a bbq and you have some very comfortable digs. All for just $65 per night.

Access-wise, there’s level access to the public areas, a lowered check-in desk, elevator access to the second floor and even an accessible shuttle. Some standard rooms have low step showers with grab bars, and toilet grab bars around the toilet; but they also have an accessible room that’s equipped with a roll-in shower. Truly they thought of everything.

Beyond Walden House

Of course, not everyone will find themselves undergoing emergency treatment in Coeur d’Alene; so as wonderful as Walden House is, you may have to find other options. And in that respect, the first place to look for emergency medical travel lodging options is on the hospital website. Many large hospitals list nearby choices, and although access isn’t mentioned, many times they do take that into consideration when choosing appropriate recommendations.

It’s also a good idea to search the Ronald McDonald House Programs website for a nearby chapter (rmhc.org/find-a-chapter). They generally provide housing for the immediate families of pediatric patients, but they also have adult housing in some locations. The social workers at the hospitals are also good resources. Not only can they direct you to on-campus housing options, but they usually also have a list of nearby hotels that offer discounts. And many of those hotels have their access information online.

And if you need temporary housing because of cancer treatments, Hope Lodge (cancer.org), and Joe’s House (https://www.joeshouse.org/) also have local referrals. Although they don’t list access details on the website, they do have photos.

Finally, a little advance preparation goes a long way. In retrospect I was ill prepared for my husband’s situation; in fact I was lucky I grabbed my phone charger as the EMTs carted him out the door. Ironically I have a detailed emergency fire evacuation list on my refrigerator, should we ever be evacuated (again). That said, I now have an emergency medical “bug-out kit”. It’s a gallon Ziploc bag filed with essential toiletries, meds, and some clean socks and underwear. It’s in my nightstand drawer, and although I hope I never have to use it, it’s there if I do. As they say — better safe than sorry.

Resource

Wheelchair-Accessible Greece Tours & Shore Excursions

Candy B. Harrington accessible, caregiver, cruise, day tours, diving, Europe, Greece, hotel, shore excursions, snorkel, tours, van rental January 12, 2024

If you’re planning a trip to Greece, then check out the comprehensive list of wheelchair-accessible Greece tours and shore excursions and accessible services available from Athens-based Care Under the Sun (www.careundersun.com). Day tour offerings include everything from an Athens food tour and Santorini wine tour, to a Rhodes old town excursion and even a visit to Cape Sounion. These wheelchair-accessible Greece tours include transportation in lift-equipped vans and knowledgeable tour guides; and many can also be done as shore excursions with transportation to and from cruise ships. And if you’d like something a little more active, then try one of their accessible diving and snorkeling day tours.

Care Under the Sun can also arrange for accessible hotels, airport transfers and accessible van rentals. Additionally, they conduct several accessible Greece group tours throughout the year. They can also make arrangements for dialysis treatments and medical equipment rentals. And if you need assistance, they can provide a personal care assistant or nurse. For more information about their accessible Greece tours, contact Care under the Sun at +30 6944319506 or info@careundersun.com.