DOJ Settles With Blockbuster Over Service Animal Access
Author: U.S. Department of Justice
Published: 2010/07/20 - Updated: 2026/05/18
Publication Type: Announcement
Contents: Synopsis - Definition - Introduction - Main - Insights, Updates - Related Publications
Synopsis: This report details a Title III settlement agreement between the U.S. Department of Justice and Blockbuster Inc. that resolves a disability complaint and obligates the video rental chain to guarantee equal access for customers who use service animals across more than 3,000 retail locations nationwide. Under the three-year agreement, Blockbuster must adopt a written nationwide service animal nondiscrimination policy, train current and newly hired employees on the rights of service animal users, post the policy on its website and a "Service Animals Welcome" sign in every store, operate a toll-free ADA complaint line, run a grievance procedure for customer complaints, pay 12,000 dollars in damages to the complainant, and pay a 10,000 dollar civil penalty. The document also clarifies the functional roles service animals perform - from guiding people who are blind, alerting people who are deaf, warning of seizures, and assisting with mobility tasks - making it a useful reference for people with disabilities, seniors, business operators, and advocates who need to understand Title III service animal obligations in practical terms.
- Topic Definition: Service Animal Access Rights
Service animal access rights are the legal protections under the Americans with Disabilities Act that allow individuals with disabilities to be accompanied by a service animal - an animal, most commonly a dog, individually trained to perform tasks directly related to a person's disability - in all areas of public accommodations and government facilities where other members of the public are allowed to go. Under Titles II and III of the ADA, state and local governments, retail stores, restaurants, hotels, medical offices, transportation providers, and other entities serving the public must modify "no pets" rules to permit service animals, may not require special identification, certification, or proof of training, and may only ask whether the animal is required because of a disability and what work or task it has been trained to perform. Excluding, segregating, or imposing surcharges on a person because they use a service animal is a form of unlawful disability discrimination.
Introduction
Justice Department Reaches Settlement with Blockbuster Inc. Under ADA
The Justice Department announced a settlement agreement under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) with Blockbuster Inc. to ensure equal access to its stores nationwide for individuals with disabilities who use service animals.
The settlement agreement, which resolves a complaint filed under title III of the ADA by an individual with a disability, requires, among other things, that Blockbuster provide comprehensive training to employees at more than 3,000 retail stores throughout the United States to ensure individuals with disabilities who use service animals have full and equal enjoyment of its goods, services and facilities.
"The Americans with Disabilities Act guarantees equal access to individuals with disabilities who are accompanied by service animals, but too often those individuals are subject to discrimination because of mis-perceptions or a lack of understanding of the law," said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division.
Main Content
The agreement, which will remain in effect for three years, requires that Blockbuster:
- Implement a comprehensive nationwide nondiscrimination policy regarding service animals for people with disabilities.
- Distribute the policy and train employees across the United States on the rights of service animal users and employee obligations to ensure full and equal access to Blockbuster goods, services and facilities.
- Provide the same training to new staff during the hiring process.
- Post its service animal policy on its website and in its stores, and post a "Service Animals Welcome" sign in each of its stores.
- Create a toll-free ADA complaint line.
- Establish, implement, and monitor a grievance procedure for ADA-related complaints from customers.
- Pay $12,000 in damages to the individual who filed the complaint resolved by this settlement.
- Pay $10,000 as a civil penalty.
A service animal is individually trained to work or perform tasks for the benefit of an individual with a disability. Service animals - most commonly dogs - perform a wide variety of functions. Examples of these functions include guiding persons who are blind or have low vision, alerting individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing to sounds, warning persons about impending seizures or other medical conditions, performing a variety of tasks for persons with psychiatric disabilities, and picking up items, opening doors, flipping switches, providing physical support and pulling wheelchairs for individuals with mobility disabilities.
Title III of the ADA prohibits discrimination by retail stores, restaurants, hotels, taxi and bus companies, doctors, hospitals and other private businesses and nonprofit organizations that provide services to the public. Title II of the ADA prohibits discrimination by public entities, including state and local governments and public transportation providers. All of these entities are prohibited from excluding individuals with disabilities from their facilities, services and programs because the individuals use service animals. If any of these entities has a rule excluding pets or other animals, it must make an exception to that rule and permit an individual with a disability to be accompanied by a service animal anywhere on the premises that other customers are permitted to go.
"The ADA's 20th anniversary is July 26, 2010," said Assistant Attorney General Perez. "As we celebrate the anniversary of this landmark civil rights law, we are pleased that Blockbuster has affirmed its commitment to ensuring that individuals with disabilities benefit fully and equally from its goods, facilities, and services, including individuals who use service animals."
Further Information
More information about the Civil Rights Division and the laws it enforces is available at the website.
More information about this agreement, the ADA, and ADA rights and responsibilities relating to service animals is available on the ADA home page.
This information includes two publications specifically addressing access for individuals accompanied by service animals: "ADA Business Brief: Service Animals" and "Commonly Asked Questions About Service Animals in Places of Business." Those interested in obtaining copies of these documents or additional information may also call the Justice Department's toll-free ADA Information Line at (800) 514-0301 or (800) 514-0383 (TTY).
Insights, Analysis, and Developments
Editorial Note: Service animal access disputes are rarely about malice and almost always about misinformation - a clerk who believes a "no pets" rule still applies, a manager who asks for paperwork the law does not require, or a chain that never bothered to train staff on the difference between a pet and a working animal. Settlements like this one are valuable precisely because they force the issue beyond a single store and into formal nationwide policy, signage, complaint lines, and recurring employee training. For a customer who relies on a guide dog, a hearing alert dog, or a mobility assistance dog, that institutional shift is the difference between routinely being turned away at the door and simply being able to rent a movie like anyone else.Attribution/Source(s): This quality-reviewed publication was selected for publishing by the editors of Disabled World (DW) due to its relevance to the disability community. Originally authored by U.S. Department of Justice and published on 2010/07/20, this content may have been edited for style, clarity, or brevity.