Dear WH&LA Members,
WH&LA has recently been made aware that lawsuits against Wisconsin lodging facilities are apparently on the rise in cases targeting properties with websites that may not comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). To further complicate matters, there are several areas of the ADA that are being used to target our industry:
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Reservation System Requirements: Accessibility information for common areas and for accessible guest rooms so consumers can make an informed choice.
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Website Accessibility Requirements: Websites are required to be designed so that people who are blind or who have visual impairments, are deaf or hearing impaired, or who have mobility or cognitive challenges are able to access your content in a meaningful way.
We are currently working to develop some online training for members in this space, and we will announce the programs as soon as they are available. In the meantime, here are several resources that we found that may help you avoid loss that several others are experiencing:
AHLA reports that the “law has been used as a weapon by scheming lawyers seeking to extort easy settlements from small business owners through demands for exorbitant attorney’s fees after alleging ambiguous violations of the law.” We’ll continue to work with AHLA at the Federal level to seek a remedy for this exploitation of the ADA law.
We encourage all members to protect yourselves from the headaches that these lawsuits bring by making sure your website is in compliance with the ADA. We will be in touch with you as soon as we have more resources around this matter.
Highlights from Recent Survey
The results are in from our recent “One-Minute Survey”, and unfortunately the outlook isn’t great. Here are the key takeaways:
- More than 47% of hotel and lodging properties in Wisconsin will close within the next 6 months without loan or grant assistance
- Nearly 20% will close within the next 3 months without assistance
These numbers are obviously alarming, and we will continue to advocate for additional relief for our industry as the pandemic rages on.
As always, please feel free to contact us if you have any questions.
King Regards,
Bill Elliott, CAE
WH&LA President & CEO
