Another Disney Lawsuit

[KYMickey]

Really, it is up to the individual to have made sure they know how to safely operate an ECV in a crowd, but I would say 90% of the time the issues have nothing to do with the ECV driver, when I have needed one, I have been pulled off to the side of the road, completely stopped and someone runs into me and cusses me out, even though I am out of the way and not moving in any fashion.

Additionally, people seem to be under the impression that mobility devices stop on a dime, and while the ECVs that Disney rents now do, one of the reasons I would never recommend one of them, most don't because stopping on a dime tends to injure the person riding them, many of whom already have preexisting conditions that would be made even worse. It would be far better for people who are fully mobile to see people in mobility devices (manual or powered) and move out of their way instead of expecting the person in the mobility device to move, this is even more true with manual devices where they may be exerting a lot of effort to power them up a hill, etc. Now you want them to stop at the last second or swerve around someone who decided to jump out in front of them, this isn't always possible and people on both sides need to be more aware of their surroundings, but the bulk of the responsibility does need to go to the people not using mobility devices as it is easier for them to move.

That's a completely unreasonable expectation. I'm confined to a power wheelchair full-time and can tell you right now that nobody will observe you or get out of your way. Part of it is because they could care less but another major reason is they can't see you as well. You are down much lower and when they look out there looking over you. On the other hand the driver of an ECV or wheelchair is lower and can easily see everybody around them. Also, since they are the minority and more out of the norm than someone walking they bear the most of the responsibility for avoiding conflicts.

 

[disneynutz]

I have been on both sides of the issue. I will say that when using an ECV, I have had more people walk into me or stop directly in front of me without thinking.

Bill

 

[PrincessArlena'sDad]

To sum it up:
There are tons of rude people at WDW.
Some of them are in ECVs
Some of them are walking.

 

[jknezek]

To sum it up:
There are tons of rude people at WDW.
Some of them are in ECVs
Some of them are walking.

Addendum...
Some of them push strollers.

 

[cm8]

Addendum...
Some of them push strollers.

I second that!!

 

[OSUZorba]

To sum it up:
There are tons of rude people at WDW.
Some of them are in ECVs
Some of them are walking.

There are also just a ton of people in a tight space with lots of distractions, so bumping into each other happens and people tend to assign malice to simple accidents.

My MIL actually used an ECVs for the first time ever at EPCOT this year because she hurt her foot really bad the day before. She actually ran over my FIL's foot after a bunch of characters all of sudden appeared next to America. FIL and MIL were looking at the characters, FIL stopped right in front of her and she didn't stop. Complete accident because both were distracted. Luckily, she didn't hit anything/anyone else.

 

[makthompson]

Seems like a repetitive narrative, but....

https://www.orlandosentinel.com/business/tourism/os-cfb-disney-scooter-lawsuit-20190129-story.html

Wow! This is ridiculous

 

[tex1989]

I work for a large energy company and our brand is on gas stations all over the country. Problem is we have branding agreements with the people who actually own them but no ownership. If something happens at one of those stations you better believe we are always named in the lawsuit even though ownership, day to day operations and the hiring of staff, maintenence, etc. is all the responsibility of the third party owner operator. You always chase the deepest pockets, so in that regard whether they have a lawsuit against the person that actually ran her over or not, they will sue Disney as well.

The real issue is this, anyone who has vacationed at WDW knows that the one thing you will do a lot of is walk! We average 21 to 22k steps a day according to our Fitbits. At home normal work days I average 6k. WDW is the only place I know of where people who have never used an EVC in their lives are going to hop on one and go for it. So driver error is by far the number one cause of incidents so I think they are the ones that should be held liable for any damages or incidents. Now in that regard Disney is not willing to help you find the person who did it because that would potentially impact return guests. Let's face it admission prices being what they are for Disney a person in an EVC will ride less rides, use less resources and generate more money overall than an ablebodied person. Grandma and Grandpa don't do Space Mountain (most don't obviously some do). So Disney is not motivated to help your lawsuit.

We just stay off our phones, keep our eyes up and ears open and treat the walkways at Disney like the Gulf Freeway at rush hour back home. It keeps us from getting run over. And mind you I am 59 and my wife is 60 but we refuse to do scooters and still walk it all. Perhaps once we get to that phase our attitudes will change but for now it seems to be survival of the fittest.

 

[Shoshana]

The undulated Disney is going to get a handle on this is to forbid outside rentals and all the rental for use in the parks done by them. If they do that they could also require that anybody renting 1 demonstrate their ability to control one. That alone would certainly and laminate some of the abuse. I realize they can't ask people what disability they have to qualify for renting 1 but anything would certainly help.


Those kids have probably handed any and everything they want and are just completely spoiled. Their parents are probably brought up the same exact way and that's why this is happening.

Except Neither Disney nor outside companies rent motorized wheelchairs or scooters to kids. Adults only. That’s why I push my teen daughter in a manual wheelchair.

 

[nicky89]

How about all the people that walk into a stroller and then blame the person pushing it for them not paying attention or walking straight.

I got yelled at badly at rope drop in Epcot where the path massively narrows in front of Innoventions because the other people walked into my stroller as I was going completely straight and they were merging in. People cut off and run into strollers all the time because they aren't paying attention, it isn't always the strollers fault.

I have accidently bumped a couple people in 30+ days at Disney with a stroller, but I've always said sorry and it was never more than a small bump. Usually from trying to go around something and not noticing the person going straight next to me.

I can attest that people do the exact same thing when you are in a scooter. I can’t count the times I have been cut off from people not paying attention and cutting right in front of me. To be honest, I’m surprised I never accidentally hit one of them because they come that close and out of nowhere in some cases. No apologies or nothing. It’s not always the stroller/scooter that is at fault. If everyone would just be a little more aware it would help everyone else too.

 

[Scifidiner]

There are too many people in WDW...and too many lawyers.

 

[midaroco]

I'm sure Disney has plenty of lawyers, PLENTY, who are paid to advise them on a whole host of things. Probably the most talked about, liability as it pertains to all things Disney. If in fact Disney could be held accountable for the actions of a wild EVC driver we would have already seen remedies to this problem.

Ehhh.... this isn’t so true. Disney blatantly turns an eye when profits are involved. Just look at Main Street during the fireworks or a parade. That’s not only over capacity, its been stated by several cast members that there have been numerous occasions where customers have almost died because the EMT volunteers couldn’t get to them due to the over crowding. I’m quite certain this went against their lawyers advisements.

 

[Tempty]

Just look at Main Street during the fireworks or a parade. That’s not only over capacity, its been stated by several cast members that there have been numerous occasions where customers have almost died because the EMT volunteers couldn’t get to them due to the over crowding. I’m quite certain this went against their lawyers advisements.

Eh really? I've honestly never heard of that, do you have any sources? That's horrifically fascinating to me; I peruse Disney "accidents" pages all the time and have never heard anything about this so I'm curious

 

[gopher101]

My dad cannot walk for more than a few feet and has to use an evc in everyday life. He has gotten good at people watching and stopping so he doesn't hit them. I have also seen people in evcs that think they go first always and almost hit me. It is all about the person walking/driving and whether they think it is all about me. To say ban them is not fair, there are people out there who need them to be able to leave the house. It is easy to blame an evc, but this is a case of do not let a rotten apple make you throw out the whole bunch.

To those who say ban all outside rentals, are you going to say the same for strollers or wheelchairs. No, than you cannot do the same for evc's. Also what about the people who own theirs, would they not be allowed to bring theirs in?

The worst we encounter is Walmart, so we joke that every time we go to Walmart it is practice foe WDW.

 

[NotUrsula]

Under the ADA we cannot ask folks who want to rent scooters whether or not they medically *need* to use one, but yes, we sure as heck can pass laws that require a license to operate one in a public place, just as we do motorcycles. They are heavy and capable of inflicting pretty nasty injury to pedestrians; it is absolutely reasonable to require the person using one to demonstrate that they know how to safely do so, and a government-issued license is the time-honored most efficient way to do that.

True, it won't stop the oblivious from walking right in front of one, but it should stop incidents like the one described above where a rider pinned a pedestrian because she didn't know how to properly operate the controls. It also should help cut down on the number of able-bodied people who decide on a whim that they want one at WDW; if they have to plan in advance and pass a driving test first, most won't bother.

 

[Hikergirl]

I hope she wins

 

[KYMickey]

I hope she wins

On what grounds do you feel she should win it? It certainly seems like a frivolous lawsuit on her behalf, one that has no basis. If she was just filing suit against the person who hit her I would completely understand it but Disney was not involved in any way in the accident.

 

[KYMickey]

While browsing around Internet I found this from the ADA: https://www.ada.gov/opdmd.htm Interestingly I really can't it seems like Disney could have been forced to allow Segways etc. Shows how good their lawyers are.

 

[UncleMike101]

I have been on both sides of the issue. I will say that when using an ECV, I have had more people walk into me or stop directly in front of me without thinking.

Bill

Same here.
And it's because of decades of defensive driving practices and training that I haven't collided with someone who's stepped in front of me without looking or are being held captive by their hand held hypnosis devices.
Yet............
Although I did scratch up the ECV when I had to make a sharp turn to the right and connected with a curb in the MK to avoid a zombie on her cell phone.
BTW..........
My theory as to why they're called "cell" phones.
Because so many users are inside of the mental prison cell that the devices generate.

 

[Hikergirl]

On what grounds do you feel she should win it? It certainly seems like a frivolous lawsuit on her behalf, one that has no basis. If she was just filing suit against the person who hit her I would completely understand it but Disney was not involved in any way in the accident.