Forget the prescription from your doctor. In the first place, they are not allowed to ask for ANY information about the nature or extent of your disability. They are now required to accept any state issued disability tag OR your verbal statement unless they have some visual evidence to the contrary. If you are turning cartwheels...

I always try to come up with some disability that would leave someone ONLY able to turn cartwheels -- unless they're on a Segway.

Though anybody with such a disorder who gets off their Segway for any reason in a store and starts turning cartwheels, probably deserves to be thrown out for that reason. STAY ON YOUR SEGWAY!

But seriously, that also applies to us. Don't give them a chance to form an uninformed opinion about your degree of disability. You're on a Segway because you need to be. That's all they need to know.

They may conclude you're able bodied just because on a Segway you're standing and agile. But they have no factual evidence, just prejudice, and if they never saw you off the Segway, the "visual evidence" thing can't even enter into it.

If I've been on the Segway for a while, though, my difficulties become pretty obvious. But a lot of people I talk to in stores -- generally other customers -- are surprised that I have a disability. You have to expect that store managers have the same blind spot. But they also have a duty. If they don't accept the copy of my placard on the front, or my verbal statements, then they get the full force of my ADA speech; that they've had 20 years to learn the law, it's enforced by the US DOJ Civil Rights division, and is now *explicitly* covered, because too many people had trouble with the concept.

I try to make it plain that down one path lies a whole lot of aggravation -- pissed off customer, legal hassles, bad publicity, perhaps monetary consequences, while down the other they get a pleasant, satisfied customer who causes no trouble.

My favorite moments are when bystanders jump in to offer support for my statements. Yes, sometimes random bystanders have a better grasp of the ADA than store managers.

Following Up
 

Hi all thanks for responses. In regards to the question of how I shop with my segway gen 1 standing it is simple. I usually am only shopping for a few items when I go to the store such as pop, etc, as I do most of my shopping at the farmers market where it is bagged directly. Since I shop every week and just for two people there's no need to carry too much. That and since there are two of us my girlfriend can carry items at the store as well for both of us.


The grocery store in question got in touch with my through their customer service. They issues a sort of apology while at the same time claiming that the initial reason I was kicked out was for "going too fast" and denied my claims of physical aggression, touching, harassment etc. I was told I can shop at that store again but could care less as I've moved since then and am moving again.


Sadly, that was not the last store to give me crap. Now the LCBO, that's the only liquor store in Ontario for you yanks, has been telling me that they think the Segway is a safety risk. I was told "we don't even let dogs in here" and also asked to provide doctors notes. The legal issues here are supremely ill defined in canada without anything like what you guys luckily have in the US. Here we just passed a law called the Accesible Customer Service Standards but there is no body, I repeat, NO BODY, enforcing complaints from CUSTOMERS. I tried to make a complaint about the store and was given the run around until I learned that there is indeed a call in line for businesses but no one to call as a customer to complain that the law is being violated or the standards not met. For instance the law says that any business with more than 20 employees must provide a plan for how to handle the new standards but when this business didn't, there is no way to force them to. In fact they have two years in which to provide their report of how their plan went, but they never need to share the plan itself, even though it says specifically they have to provide a copy to anyone who asks! Well, too bad because there is no way to make them do that without having a lawyer. I've called a lawyer clinic and will pursue learning about the issue.

I was told while filming the harassment that it is illegal to film in a store because it is private property and we are violating privacy. This after they literally asked to see a note from my doctor, totally private!

The reason I was given as to why the segway was unsafe was "what if there was a bottle lying on the floor". Well, I'm pretty sure that would the the stores preogative and I ought to sue them.


I am trying to put together a campaign to legalize segways in Canada and raise awareness about their use as a mobility device. It always comes down to the same thing.

When I called Human Rights Council advisors they told me I don't have a good case because the perception is not that Segways are for handicapped people, never mind that I'm one of if not the first person to use it as such in my city so my rights don't count!? They are not allowed to deal with any law outside of their limited human rights code so the new laws passed specifically related to disability are NOT INCLUDED and can't be a part of my case! They are the only body that can investigate these problems but they aren't even allowed to go beyond the purview of their existing law that came out way before these electric scooters were available. I was also told that unless I have a doctors note on me at all times that says I specifically need to use a Segway that I am out of luck. I have a note that says I need a standing scooter... but people see that and tell me "uh but it doesn't say Segway." I can reply that the pilot program legalized SEgways as a mobility device and ONLY Segways but at this point security is already there harassing me, telling me to leave and if I don't I will be put under arrest...

Sawbones
 

I was thrown out of a Home Depot some time ago, and decided not to pursue it. I have used carts standing on a p133 with no problem, either pushing it, or pulling it.

I recently built a ramp to help me load my p133 into my Forester and i’d Love to post them. Any advice on how that’s done, and where.

Sawbones

Might need more than 3 posts to be able to download pictures?