OAKLAND, Calif. – Hotels.com, one of the world’s largest online travel agencies, is discriminating against people with disabilities by refusing to guarantee reservations for wheelchair-accessible rooms, according to a California class action lawsuit filed today.  The lawsuit is one of the first of its kind in the country.  Because of the substantial size of the California market, the case has national implications. 

The complaint, filed in the California Superior Court for Alameda County, seeks to enjoin hotels.com from continued violation of the state’s civil rights laws.  No damages are being sought.  Plaintiffs in this landmark case are represented by the public interest law firms Disability Rights Advocates (DRA) and Public Justice (formerly Trial Lawyers for Public Justice), and Chavez & Gertler LLP, a leading class action law firm in Mill Valley, Calif.

“I want to be able to reserve hotel accommodations online at hotels.com just like anyone else,” says plaintiff Bonnie Lewkowicz.  “It would be unwise and potentially dangerous for me to rely on a hotel reservation service that does not guarantee the hotel room I am booking is accessible to someone in a wheelchair.  Accessibility isn’t a preference for me – it’s a necessity.”  

Hotels.com grossed $2.3 billion in 2006.  It bills itself as a “one stop shopping source for hotel prices, amenities and availability” and claims to offer the “Lowest Rates – Guaranteed.”  The hotels.com website does not allow an individual to search for rooms accessible to the mobility impaired, does not define what qualifies a room as accessible, and does not uniformly report on the accessibility features which may or may not be offered.

More importantly, hotels.com will not guarantee that a wheelchair-accessible room will in fact be available.  Instead, it treats accessibility as an optional “amenity”, like a king-sized bed.  Individuals with disabilities cannot find out whether an accessible room is available until after they travel to their destination and then check-in at the hotel.

“The failure to guarantee accessible hotel rooms means that a person in a wheelchair who pays for a room through hotels.com literally might not be able to enter the room after they arrive at the hotel,” said Kevin Knestrick, attorney with DRA, a non-profit law center based in Berkeley, Calif., that specializes in high-impact lawsuits on behalf of people with disabilities.  “Hotels.com is excluding people with mobility disabilities from its services.  This is hostility to disabled and elderly people, not hospitality.”

Studies show that 69 percent of adults with disabilities in the U.S. (more than 21 million people) traveled at least once in the past two years, and 52 percent (about 16 million people) stayed in hotels, motels, or inns during that time.

Lewkowicz and co-plaintiff Judith Smith are both members of the AXIS Dance Company, a not-for-profit troupe of disabled and non-disabled dancers based in Oakland, Calif.  AXIS regularly tours throughout California and the nation.  Ms. Smith and Ms. Lewkowicz need accessible hotel accommodations when traveling because they rely on wheelchairs for mobility. 

Wheelchairs require large doorways and disabled travelers usually need grab bars and accessible bathrooms.  Without such features, many cannot stay in a hotel room.  Currently, virtually all hotels in California are required to maintain accessible hotel rooms for the use of patrons with disabilities.                              

“Disabled travelers are effectively denied access to hotel.com’s discounted rates and convenient side-by-side comparisons of available rooms,” explains Victoria Ni of Public Justice, a national public interest law firm specializing in cutting-edge litigation.  “As a result, disabled travelers have to spend extra time and money just to secure a workable hotel reservation.”  

In 2006, American online consumer travel sales generated $79 billion.  For American travelers, the Internet is an indispensable tool as both a resource for planning trips and as a booking agent.  Adults with disabilities spend over $10 billion annually on travel, and almost half of them consult the Internet to support their disability-related travel needs.   

“It’s unfortunate that hotels.com doesn’t care about people with disabilities,” says Smith.  “We felt it was important to the entire community of people with disabilities to seek the protection of the court.”

To view the full complaint in the case, click here.