Marriott will take steps to make it easier for people with disabilities to reserve accessible rooms under an agreement with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado. (Jonathan Kemper/Unsplash)
One of the world’s largest hotel chains has agreed to make major changes after federal prosecutors said people with disabilities face numerous barriers when booking rooms.
Marriott International reached an agreement this month with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado to resolve alleged violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act and will be changing its reservation policies and practices.
The move comes after the U.S. Attorney’s Office received numerous complaints from individuals with disabilities and a subsequent investigation found that Marriott’s centralized electronic reservation system lacked the minimum number of accessible rooms required by the ADA for many of its branded hotels, and some properties did not list any accessible rooms at all. Additionally, prosecutors said Marriott’s website did not include readily available information about accessible rooms, and that prior to October 2022, it was not possible to guarantee reservations for accessible rooms at Marriott-branded hotels using third-party websites such as Expedia.com or Booking.com.
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The allegations stem from a 2010 Department of Justice rule, the “Reservation Rule,” which clarified that the ADA requires hotels to offer reservations for accessible rooms on an equal footing with other rooms. Another rule, the “ADA Accessible Design Standards,” updated in 2010, requires hotels to offer minimum accessible rooms and provide a choice of accessible room types.
Under the settlement, Marriott will pay a civil penalty of $50,000. Marriott-branded hotels will be required to accurately list accessible rooms in the company’s centralized electronic reservation system, and this information will be made available to major third-party hotel reservation systems. Hotel websites will centrally list accessible room inventory.
Marriott also agreed to make more accessible rooms available for reservation through its rewards system, and the company will train its call center employees on handling accessible room requests and track guest complaints about problems reserving accessible rooms. Meanwhile, Marriott-branded hotels will be required to report whether they are meeting ADA requirements to provide a minimum number of accessible rooms.
“Today’s agreement with Marriott International will significantly improve the experience for people with disabilities when booking accessible rooms at Marriott-branded hotels,” Matt Kirsch, acting U.S. attorney for the District of Colorado, said when announcing the settlement earlier this month.
In the settlement, Marriott denied violating the ADA and did not admit liability.
“Marriott International has a long history of being inclusive and welcoming to all. We are committed to working with the Department of Justice to reach the settlement agreement and to taking steps to improve booking accessibility across the Marriott system through enhanced training, new processes, increased oversight and collaboration with our distribution partners,” a company spokesperson said in a statement.
The settlement applies to reservations for the following hotel brands in the U.S.: AC Hotels by Marriott, Aloft Hotels, Autograph Collection Hotels, Courtyard, Delta Hotels, EDITION, Element Hotels, Fairfield Inn & Suites, Four Points, Gaylord Hotels, JW Marriott, Le Méridien, The Luxury Collection, Marriott Hotels, Moxy Hotels, Renaissance Hotels, Residence Inn, The Ritz-Carlton, Sheraton, SpringHill Suites, St. Regis, TownePlace Suites, Tribute Portfolio, W Hotels and Westin.
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