Recently, McDonald’s, K-Mart, Grubhub, and Empire Today faced a federal lawsuit that alleged the websites and apps of the respective companies violated the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) because they were inaccessible to individuals who are blind.

The cases of the plaintiffs were dismissed in October and November because of an undisclosed settlement agreement.

What Is the Americans with Disabilities Act?

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a federal law that became effective in 1990. The ADA is to help people with disabilities receive the same access to housing, employment, public accommodations, state and federal government services and buildings, and accessing commercial entities (such as fast food restaurants and retail entities).

Companies Will Improve Coding to Comply with ADA

Ultimately, the allegations centered around the coding of both the websites and the apps for the named defendants. Plaintiffs, who are visually impaired and who live in Los Angeles, alleged that the current coding of the websites and apps made it inaccessible because their screen reading software couldn’t properly navigate through them.

Rusty Payton, a lawyer for a plaintiff who sued Grubhub stated that the goal for all of the clients was to benefit from the websites and apps like other consumers. Payton went on to state that services like Grubhub are especially important to people with disabilities because it provides individuals the option to access food from restaurants without encountering potentially more serious obstacles by going to a restaurant.

Other Companies Still Facing Allegations of Violating the ADA

While McDonald’s, Grubhub, K-Mart, and Empire Today plan to improve their websites and apps to be more accessible, there are other federal lawsuits pending against McDonald’s Ace Hardware, Brinker International (the parent company of Chili’s), Quizno’s, Arby’s, and six other retail and restaurants. The companies are accused of violating the ADA.