A Small Win with Big Implications

By Linda Bartram

Too often, what I have to report is about barriers and the struggles I and others in the blind community continue to have regarding meeting our accessibility needs. Today I get to report an advocacy win!

In April, myself and three colleagues stayed at the Days Inn in downtown Vancouver. Like me, one of these colleagues is also blind. When checking in, it was necessary for us all to use the point of sale (POS) machine and our credit cards. The hotel had a policy that the card was to be inserted into the machine and a PIN entered. No tap was available. Unfortunately the POS had a flat screen rendering it inaccessible to myself and my blind peer. We had no other choice but to give our PIN to one of our sighted colleagues to complete the transaction. As we all know, you are not to give your PIN to anyone for security reasons so this was a very unsatisfactory situation. 

After our stay, I followed up with the manager and he indicated that they were aware of the issue but had not found a solution before my visit. My complaint prompted him to “try harder” which resulted in the POS manufacturer, Clover, providing a tactile overlay within days.

I recently had the opportunity to visit the hotel again with three blind peers to check out the tactile solution. The front desk staff were aware of the overlay and were quite happy to show it to us. It is a plastic sheet that is temporarily adhered to the POS face. It has tactile buttons corresponding to a typical number pad with the number 5 clearly marked. It also has three buttons along the bottom--a tactile X (cancel) on the left, a back arrow key in the middle and a raised O on the right for okay. Apparently the manufacturer, Clover, has different sized overlays for their different POS models. 

The hotel staff have observed that Clover POS machines are being used everywhere. So if you run into a flat screen POS machine, then it might be worth your while to ask the retailer if it is a Clover machine and if so for the overlay to be provided. If they don’t have one then ask them to contact the manufacturer to supply them with one--better ensuring your continued business. 

And when you discover a business that has taken the time to accommodate the needs of their customers who happen to be blind, let them know how appreciative you are and let the blind community know also.