Lyft will pay various amounts in damages to the complainants, including $30,000 to J.H. It’s been ordered to modify its wheelchair policy to specify that “drivers are required to assist with the stowing of foldable or collapsible mobility devices used by individuals with disabilities, such as wheelchairs, scooters, and walkers.” The company will make a few changes to better educate drivers on the wheelchair policy, like sending quarterly reminders of the policy to drivers and creating a new educational video about the policy. For the next three years, Lyft will give the Justice Department biannual written reports on what it’s doing to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Accessibility of rideshares has been an ongoing concern and the subject of many legal battles. Uber has been sued multiple times for failing to accommodate passengers with disabilities. A 2018 study conducted by the New York Lawyers for Public Interest found that 70 percent of the time, Uber and Lyft failed to provide wheelchair accessible vehicles in New York City.