Pr Newswire

Wednesday May 24, 1:05 pm Eastern Time
Company Press Release
SOURCE: National Federation of the Blind
National Federation of the Blind Sues Over ATM Accessibility; Suits Against
Chevy Chase Bank, Rite Aid, and Diebold Charge ADA Violations
WASHINGTON, May 24 /PRNewswire/ -- In a warning shot to ATM owners and
operators nationwide, the National Federation of the Blind (NFB), its local
affiliate the National Federation of the Blind of the District of Columbia,
the Disability Rights Council of Greater Washington, and several blind
individuals filed suit today against Chevy Chase Bank, charging that the
bank's more than 800 automated teller machines (ATMs) in Maryland,
Virginia, and the District of Columbia are in violation of the Americans
with Disabilities Act (ADA).

In a separate suit, the plaintiffs charged Rite Aid Corporation and
Diebold, one of the leading manufacturers of automated teller machines
(ATMs), with violating the ADA.

The lawsuit against Chevy Chase Bank states that the bank's ATMs -- many of
which are located in major visitor sites such as the Smithsonian (including
The National Air & Space Museum), The National Zoo, and all three area
airports -- are inaccessible to blind people because they use computer
screen text prompts to guide customers through transactions. These screen
text prompts are not translated into a medium that is accessible to the
blind, such as audio output.

A recent agreement between Diebold and Rite Aid under which Diebold is
installing and operating ATMs in Rite Aid stores nationwide also violates
the provisions of the ADA, according to the plaintiffs, because the ATMs
being installed use screen text prompts that are inaccessible to the blind.

``Our nation's capital should set the example for the nation to follow by
being fully accessible to persons who are blind or otherwise disabled,''
says NFB President Dr. Marc Maurer. ``It is distressing to know that the
only ATMs available in such national treasures as the Smithsonian are
inaccessible to the blind. It is equally troubling that a company like
Diebold, which manufactures and sells voice-activated ATMs that can be used
independently by the blind, has chosen instead to install machines in Rite
Aid stores that rely solely on screen text prompts.''

The two lawsuits, both of which were filed in U.S. District Court for the
District of Columbia, ask the court to order the defendants ``to make the
necessary technological modifications to their ATMs to allow access by
persons who are blind or visually impaired,'' says NFB attorney Daniel
Goldstein, Esq.

Because Diebold manufactures voice-activated ATMs, but chose not to install
them in Rite Aid outlets, the suit also seeks punitive damages against
Diebold under the provisions of the D.C. Human Rights Act. ``The bottom
line is that the technology exists to make these ATMs fully accessible,''
says Dr. Maurer. ``Unfortunately, the defendants are installing ATMs that
are inaccessible to the blind, even though the cost for voice-activated
ATMs is negligible, and providing them would not fundamentally alter the
nature of ATM services or retail drugstore facilities.''

The ADA requires that ``instructions and all information for use [in ATMs]
be made accessible to, and independently usable by, persons with vision
impairments.'' While some of the defendants' ATMs have Braille keypads and
labels, the suit charges that this feature is ``an ineffective
accommodation under the ADA.''

``Not all persons who are blind can read Braille,'' explains Dr. Maurer.
``Moreover, Braille keypads and labels are static. They do not provide
accessible and independently usable, sequential, computer screen
instructions to guide a blind customer through a bank transaction. As a
result, blind customers basically have little choice but to rely on others
to do their banking for them.''

According to NFB, the only effective means to make ATMs accessible to the
blind is voice guidance technology, which allows blind persons to hear
step- by-step instructions. Voice guidance technology is accessed by
plugging personal headphones into a universal audio jack installed in the
ATM or by using a telephone handset, also installed in the ATM.

NFB has long been actively involved in promoting adaptive technologies for
the blind so that blind people can live and work independently in today's
technology-dependent world.

The organization runs the International Braille and Technology Center for
the Blind at its headquarters in Baltimore, Maryland. The Center, which
houses more than $2 million worth of hardware and software designed
specifically for the blind, is the world's most extensive demonstration and
evaluation center for computer-related technology serving the needs of
blind people.

SOURCE: National Federation of the Blind


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