Service Animals and Places of Lodging
Service Animals and Places of Lodging – Ongoing Violations of the ADA. Given all the stresses of life, more and more people are seeking the escape of travel, and staying at hotels, motels, inns, and other places of lodging, including guests with disabilities who are accompanied by their service dog.
While places of lodging are well aware of their obligation to allow service animals to accompany guests, and commonly proclaim that “Service Animals Are Welcome”, many places of lodging discriminate on the basis of disability when it comes to putting this policy into practice, commonly requiring documentation of the animal’s training, or certification of the animal as a service animal, or asking intrusive questions, or applying a weight limit on the dog, or restricting it to certain rooms, or not allowing it into the establishment’s restaurant (or restricting where the guest can sit in the restaurant while accompanied by the dog).
And, typically, inquiries about the service animal policy made to front desks or to reservation lines, including central reservation lines of some of the nation’s largest chains, result in misinformation, where the guest is told to bring documentation to prove that it is a service animal, in violation of federal law. Sometimes the answer is couched as a “suggestion” – “We suggest you bring paperwork proving it is a service dog, or have it wear a vest”. More often, unless the caller inquires about how the property implements the “service dogs are welcome” policy, the guest is potentially subject to a problematic arrival, when they don’t have documentation or a vest proclaiming that the dog is a service dog.
For the past year, I have called places of lodging across the country, and carefully documented responses to my inquiries about service animal policies at places of lodging. The results have been disheartening, and disturbing.
I have consistently found that staff are poorly trained on the requirements of the ADA, including supervisors and central reservation agents. This includes national chains as well as small properties.
I have provided training to clients after they have been sued, and in an effort to assist them in avoiding being sued. And, the Justice Department has issued excellent technical assistance material on this, and it is readily available. Nevertheless, the violations persist.
If you are place of lodging wanting training, please contact me. And if you are a person with a disability who has experienced discrimination when trying to stay at a place of lodging accompanied by your service dog, please let me know. I am interested in collecting these stories in an effort to educate operators of places of lodging so that they may come into compliance.
I have been calling various places of lodging across the country to assess their compliance with the requirements of title III of the ADA regarding their obligation to engage in reasonable modifications of policy concerning guests with disabilities accompanied by a service dog. I have primarily focused on chain hotels, and I regret to report that my experience with calling reservation agents (including central reservations) and calling the front desks of properties reveals that discrimination on the basis of disability remains rampant.
When I was at the Justice Department, I investigated many hotels and handled many cases involving service animals. I also was instrumental in drafting the CDC’s guidance to hospitals regarding admission of service dogs and handled the first investigation of a zoo (the San Diego Zoo) and helped develop the Justice Department’s position regarding the obligation of zoos regarding guests accompanied by a service dog. I am very, very familiar with the DOJ regulations on this, and have provided ADA training across the country to places of lodging, and have advised and trained clients across the country on this, including the Marriott properties in the Florida Keys, where I live.
The violations occur when reservation agents and front desk staff, and their supervisors and managers fail to understand what is required of them when serving a guest with a disability who is accompanied by a service dog. I want to share the range of violations I have documented in my calls, without identifying the properties by name. It is my hope that owners and operators of palces of lodging learn from this, and chaange the way they operate when serving these guests.
Boston: When I asked reservations about staying at the property with a service dog, I was told that no pets were allowed, and that I would have to stay at a diffferent property. Note that I said it was a service dog, not a pet.
Key West: I would need to show paperwork evidencing that it was a service dog or I would be charged a non-refundable fee of $75, This was a pet-friendly property.
White River Junction, Vermont: Pet-friendly property. I was told I would need to show papers evidencing that it was a service dog or I would be charged a non-refundable $75 fee.
Champlain VT: I was told I would need to bring paperwork evidencing that it was a service dog or that the dog would have to wear a vest showing that it was a service dog.
Burlington, VT: I was told that I would have to show paperwork evidencing that is was a service dog. I called back, spoke to someone else, and was told the same thing.
Marathon, FL: A pet-friendly property. I was told that I would need to provide a certificate evidencing that it was a service dog or I would be charged a nonrefundable fee.
Boston: Pet-friendly hotel. I was told that I would need to provide a card evidencing that it was a service dog or I would be charged a nonrefundable fee.
Orlando, FL: Vest required or other paperwork evidencing that it was a service dog.
Orlando: I was told that if I have paperwork I should bring it.
Brooklyn, NY: Pet-friendly hotel. I specifically said it was a service dog and was told all about the pet policy, and said there would be a non-refundable fee and a weight limit. When I again pointed out that I was asking about a service dog, he hung up on me.
Brooklyn (different property): I was told there would be a $150 non-refundable fee.
These responses are all too common. For excellent technical assistance from the Justice Department on this, go to:
https://www.ada.gov/topics/service-animals/
https://www.ada.gov/resources/service-animals-2010-requirements/
https://www.ada.gov/resources/service-animals-faqs/
If you care to share your experiences, please write to me at .