Perfect 85 Degrees C Website Inaccessible to the Blind ADA Class Action

People are legally blind if they have a visual acuity of 20 x 200 or less. Some such people have limited vision; others have none at all. But even blind people can use the Internet with the help of screen readers. The complaint for this class action alleges that Perfect 85 Degrees C, Inc. violates the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) because its website is not accessible with screen readers.

The Nationwide Class for this action is all legally blind individuals who have tried to access [Perfect 85’s] website by use of a screen reading software during the applicable limitations period up to and including final judgment in this action.

The use of Internet is increasingly important to everyday life, for purposes of banking, learning, shopping, researching, and so on.

Perfect 85’s website, https://www85cbakerycafe.com/, “provides consumers with access to information about bakery locations, online ordering, rewards, memberships, nutritional facts, and ingredient lists.” It permits consumers to “purchase gift cards, download the mobile app, browse through a menu of gourmet pastries, beverages, and additional products and services which are available online and in restaurant locations for purchase.” Finally, consumers can order products online for pickup.

Blind or visually-impaired persons like the plaintiff in this case, Valerie Brooks, can use the Internet via keyboards and screen readers that vocalize information or show it on a Braille display. However, these readers require that websites are made with certain features that support them. The complaint alleges that Perfect 85’s website does not support screen readers.

The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) has published the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines v. 2.0 for making websites accessible. For example, images should have “alt-text,” that is, a text equivalent.

While trying to navigate Perfect 85’s website, plaintiff Brooks found a number of barriers, including the following:

• Lack of alt-text that provide words for graphic images.
• Empty links that don’t contain text.
• Redundant links.
• Linked images without alt-text.

The complaint claims, “These access barriers on [Perfect 85’s] website ha[ve] deterred [Brooks] from visiting [Perfect 85’s] physical locations and enjoying them equal[ly with] sighted individuals because: [Brooks] was unable to find the location and hours of operation of [Perfect 85’s] locations on its website, preventing [her] from visiting the locations to purchase services.”

The complaint quotes a part of the ADA as saying, “In the case of violations of … this title, injunctive relief shall include an order to alter facilities to make such facilities readily accessible to and usable by individuals with disabilities…. Where appropriate, injunctive relief shall also include requiring the … modification of a policy….”

The complaint alleges violations of the ADA and California’s Unruh Civil Rights Act (UCRA).

Article Type: Lawsuit
Topic: Civil Rights
Tags: Americans with Disabilities Act, Blind or Visually Impaired, Civil Rights