United States of America v. Ahold USA, Inc. and Peapod, LLC - Settlement Agreement

BACKGROUND

1. The parties to this Settlement Agreement ("Agreement") are the United States of America ("United States"), Ahold U.S.A., Inc., ("Ahold") and Peapod, LLC ("Peapod" and collectively with Ahold and the United States, the "Parties"). Ahold is the parent company of Peapod, LLC. Peapod shall comply, and Ahold will cause Peapod to comply, with the obligations contained in this Agreement. This Agreement applies and the scope is limited to www.peapod.com and its mobile applications.

2. Peapod owns and/or operates www.peapod.com and its mobile applications, which are available through the Internet to personal computers, laptops, mobile devices, tablets, and other similar devices, and provides the ability to remotely and independently browse, shop, and purchase groceries for home delivery.

3. The United States initiated a compliance review under Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 ("ADA"), 42 U.S.C. §§ 12181-12189, to determine whether individuals with disabilities have full and equal enjoyment of the goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages, and accommodations offered by Peapod through its website, www.peapod.com, and its mobile applications.

4. Following the compliance review, the United States determined that www.peapod.com is not accessible to some individuals with disabilities, including individuals who are blind or have low vision, individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing, and individuals who have physical disabilities affecting manual dexterity (such as those limiting the ability to use a mouse), in violation of Title III of the ADA. For example, individuals who are blind or have low vision and use screen reader software cannot fully participate in and benefit from the various goods, services, privileges, advantages, and accommodations provided through www.peapod.com because (1) images, buttons, and form fields are unlabeled or have inaccurate alternative text; (2) pop-up modal windows are not reported to screen readers; (3) frames are not named or identified; (4) tables are missing header information and proper mark-ups; and (5) boldface type is used to show which fields are required. Individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing cannot understand videos presented on the website because the captioning is inaccurate; and individuals who have physical disabilities that affect manual dexterity face barriers on the website because Java script throughout the website is not available to users who cannot use a mouse. Because of such barriers, individuals with disabilities are unable to fully and equally access www.peapod.com for online grocery shopping.

5. Ahold and Peapod dispute the findings set forth above and deny that www.peapod.com is in violation of Title III of the ADA. Since its inception in 1989, Peapod has been committed to providing accessibility to individuals with disabilities and has taken affirmative steps to provide accessible features on its website. Since 1993, Peapod has provided a screen reader accessible version of its website. In addition, Peapod has provided technical assistance to customers with disabilities who have difficulty using www.peapod.com. Where technical assistance does not resolve the underlying issue, Peapod takes customer orders by telephone at no additional charge and fulfills those orders within the same timeframe applicable to orders made directly online. Consistent with its longstanding commitment to accessibility, Peapod voluntarily enters into this Agreement.

6. Title III of the ADA, 42 U.S.C. §§ 12181-12189, and the relevant regulation implementing Title III, 28 C.F.R. pt. 36, prohibit discrimination on the basis of disability in the full and equal enjoyment of the goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages, and accommodations of any place of public accommodation by any private entity that owns, leases (or leases to), or operates a place of public accommodation. 42 U.S.C. § 12182(a); 28 C.F.R. § 36.201(a).