With a scant seven months left to comply with Americans with Disabilities Act rules governing everything from machine heights to the wording of Braille messages, many banks and ATM deployers have yet to take action, an analyst says.
“A lot of people are still in denial, hoping the rules will get delayed, or that they themselves won’t be impacted or that they can somehow dodge the bullet,” says Sam Ditzion, CEO of Tremont Capital Group, a Boston-based consulting company that specializes in the ATM industry. He could not estimate the number of naysayers but called it “significant.”
And the consequences could prove significant, too. Deployers that slack off may find themselves paying up to $55,000 for the first violation and $110,000 for subsequent violations if the U.S. Department of Justice takes action against them, Ditzion tells PaymentsSource. Rights groups also may file suit against them, he adds.
If deployers fail to make all of their machines comply with the every rule by the March 2012 deadline, those who at least make an effort will fare better with the DOJ and rights activists, Ditzion says.
“The last thing you want to do is do nothing,” he warns.
Instead, deployers should develop a plan of action and embark upon that plan, Ditzion advises. To help, Tremont and the ATM Industry Association, a global group, on Aug. 4 released an 8,000-word, 13-page guide.
The guide, available on the association website, provides an overview of how the Americans with Disabilities Act applies to ATMs; definitions of “safe harbor,” “undue burden” and “undue hardship;” and a description of act enforcement, according to a press release from Tremont and the association.
The guide also includes key compliance dates, explanations regarding who is held responsible if ATMs fail to comply, potential upcoming developments that could affect compliance, details of the rules, an outline of steps toward complying, and reports from ATM manufacturers on how their machines comply or fail to do so, the release said.
“Tremont’s ADA guide is hands-down the most comprehensive source of information that has ever been written on the ADA for the ATM industry,” Mike Lee, association CEO, said in the release.
The guide costs $499 for association members and $950 for nonmembers until Sept. 1, Ditzion says. After that, the prices increase to $649 for members and $1,100 for nonmembers.
Deployers’ efforts to comply appear to be having an impact on ATM makers’ financial performance. During Diebold Inc.’s conference call to discuss the company’s second quarter earnings last month, Thomas Swidarski, president and CEO of the North Canton, Ohio-based ATM manufacturer, told analysts the need to meet Americans with Disabilities Act requirements was among the key drivers that “fueled momentum during the quarter.”
