Uber Settles Guide Dog Discrimination Lawsuit - NFB
Author: National Federation of the Blind
Published: 2016/04/30 - Updated: 2026/02/20
Publication Type: Announcement
Category Topic: Transport Services - Related Publications
Contents: Synopsis - Introduction - Main - Insights, Updates
Synopsis: This report, issued by the National Federation of the Blind, details the first nationwide class-action settlement of its kind against an app-based transportation network company. The case - National Federation of the Blind of California, et al. v. Uber Technologies, Inc. - addressed the repeated denial of rides to blind passengers traveling with guide dogs, in violation of federal and state disability rights laws. Under the settlement, Uber agreed to educate drivers on their legal obligations, enforce a nondiscrimination policy that includes removing drivers who knowingly refuse service, improve its complaint response system, and submit to multi-year compliance testing. The information is directly relevant to blind and visually impaired individuals, service animal handlers, disability rights advocates, and anyone concerned with accessible transportation, as it established an important legal precedent for holding ride-hailing platforms accountable under disability discrimination law - Disabled World (DW).
- Definition: Guide Dog Discrimination in Ride-hailing Services
Guide dog discrimination in ride-hailing services refers to the refusal by drivers on platforms like Uber and Lyft to transport passengers who are blind or visually impaired and traveling with trained service animals. Despite federal protections under the Americans with Disabilities Act and parallel state laws that require transportation providers to accommodate passengers with service animals, blind riders have frequently reported being turned away, verbally harassed, or left stranded by drivers who refuse to allow guide dogs in their vehicles. The issue gained national legal significance when the National Federation of the Blind brought the first class-action lawsuit of its kind against Uber in 2016, resulting in a settlement that required the company to implement driver education, enforce nondiscrimination policies, and track complaints related to service animal refusals across its U.S. network.
Introduction
Blind Uber Riders Who Use Guide Dogs - Discrimination Settlement
In an unprecedented settlement Uber has agreed to take affirmative steps to prevent discrimination against blind riders who use guide dogs in its transportation network across the United States.
The settlement resolves a lawsuit - National Federation of the Blind of California, et al. v. Uber Technologies, Inc. - brought by the National Federation of the Blind, its California affiliate, and individuals who use guide dogs, to ensure that guide-dog users have full and equal access to vehicles in the Uber network. This is the first nationwide class-action settlement of its kind against an app-based transportation network company.
Main Content
While the growth of Uber's on-demand transportation services has the potential to be a boon to blind people, Uber drivers have regularly denied rides to blind people who use guide dogs. This discrimination violates federal and state laws that protect the rights of people with disabilities. Under the settlement, Uber will work to end this discrimination, and blind individuals will be able to use Uber without the threat of discrimination.
Uber has agreed to take affirmative steps to tell drivers about their obligations to transport riders who are disabled and use service animals, and will require that existing and new drivers expressly confirm that they understand their obligations. Uber will remove a driver from the platform if Uber finds that the driver knowingly denied a person with a disability a ride because the person was traveling with a service animal or if Uber receives complaints that a driver denied a person a ride because of a service animal on more than one occasion.
Uber will also improve its response system for complaints related to discrimination against guide-dog users, and will track detailed data on all allegations of such discrimination. Additionally, the National Federation of the Blind and its California affiliate will deploy testers over a multi-year period to evaluate Uber's compliance with the settlement.
Mark A. Riccobono, President of the National Federation of the Blind, said:
"Access to reliable and effective transportation is critical to the ability of blind people to live the lives we want. Uber and similar services can be a great asset to the blind when they are fully and equally available to us. The National Federation of the Blind is therefore pleased with Uber's commitment to implement, and effectively enforce, a nondiscrimination policy with respect to blind people who use guide dogs. We look forward to working with Uber to ensure that all blind passengers can take advantage of the innovative transportation service it offers."
Plaintiffs and defendants submitted the proposed settlement to the court on April 29, 2016, and seek approval from the court to settle as a nationwide class action. Plaintiffs are represented by Larry Paradis and Julia Marks of Disability Rights Advocates, Timothy Elder of TRE Legal, and Michael Bien and Michael Nunez of Rosen Bien Galvan & Grunfeld LLP.
Insights, Analysis, and Developments
Editorial Note: This settlement marked a turning point in how the disability community and the legal system approach discrimination by technology-driven transportation services. Before this case, blind riders who were refused service by Uber drivers had limited recourse and no clear precedent holding the platform itself accountable. By agreeing to driver education mandates, a structured complaint system, and independent compliance testing by the National Federation of the Blind, Uber acknowledged that its network carried responsibility for the conduct of its drivers toward passengers with disabilities. For the roughly one million Americans who are legally blind, reliable access to on-demand transportation is not a convenience but a necessity - and the protections established in this settlement remain a critical benchmark for how ride-hailing companies must treat riders with service animals going forward - Disabled World (DW).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 National Federation of the Blind and published on 2016/04/30, this content may have been edited for style, clarity, or brevity.