Talking ATMs

The Law Office of Lainey Feingold first began working on Talking ATMs in 1995. Lainey and her clients and co-counsel negotiated the first Talking ATM settlements in the United States. Beginning in 1999, Lainey negotiated 20 Talking ATM settlements with the country's largest financial institutions. Stories of many of these negotiations are included in Lainey's book, Structured Negotiation, A Winning Alternative to Lawsuits. This topic includes articles about those settlements, related press releases, Talking ATM regulations, international Talking ATM installations and more.

All 18,000 Bank of America ATMs are now Talking ATMs!

Posted on Updated on March 10, 2016
Bank of America Completes Installation of Talking ATMs Maintains Leadership Role in Services for Visually Impaired Customers Charlotte (March 31, 2010)– As part of its long-standing commitment to customers with visual impairments, Bank of America today announced that every Bank of America ATM in the country has been equipped with voice-enabled technology. Visually impaired customers can now access more than 18,000 Bank of America ATMs, the largest network of bank-owned ATMs in the U.S. Talking ATMs provide audible instructions in English or Spanish to persons who cannot view information on an ATM screen. These machines make it easier for people with visual impairments to withdraw cash, deposit money and perform other ATM transactions. The ATMs have audio jacks that deliver spoken instructions privately through standard headsets to protect the security of users who are blind or have low-vision. Read more… All 18,000 Bank of America ATMs are now Talking ATMs!

Revised ADA Regulations (Finally) Include Detailed Talking ATM Requirements

Posted on Updated on March 10, 2016
On September 15, 2010, the United States Department of Justice published, in the Federal Register, its revised rules implementing the Americans with Disabilities Act. Official publication is one of the last steps on a very long road leading to new ADA regulations for both public and private entities on a diverse set of issues including Talking ATMs, ticketing for accessible seating, effective communication, service animals and more. The next steps? The new rules take effect on March 15, 2011 – six months after publication in the Federal Register. Compliance with the new 2010 Standards for Accessible Design (revising what is often erroneously referred to as ADAAG), is required as of March, 2012. Read more… Revised ADA Regulations (Finally) Include Detailed Talking ATM Requirements

Talking ATMs in Jakarta, Indonesia

Posted on Updated on March 10, 2016
Talking ATM technology continues to spread across the globe. Earlier this month, the Standard Chartered Bank in Indonesia announced installation of that country’s first Talking ATMs. The full article that appeared in the Jakarta Times is posted here. Other posts on this website about Talking ATMs in countries outside the United States may be found in the International Issues category on LFLegal.com. Read more… Talking ATMs in Jakarta, Indonesia

Barclays Bank Agrees to Install Talking ATMs as Part of RNIB Campaign

Posted on Updated on March 10, 2016
Congratulations to the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) in the United Kingdom for signing up Barclays Bank as part of RNIB’s “Money Talks” program. Barclays has committed to install Talking ATMs at its branches by the end of 2012. Posted here is the article about Barclays that appeared on ZDNet UK on November 22, 2011. Read more… Barclays Bank Agrees to Install Talking ATMs as Part of RNIB Campaign

Talking ATMs in Brunei, Southeast Asia

Posted on Updated on March 10, 2016
Today’s Talking ATM Google Alert brought news of the first Talking ATM in Brunei, a sovereign state located on the north coast of the island of Borneo, in Southeast Asia. The country’s official name is Brunei Darussalam, meaning Nation of Brunei, the Abode of Peace. The news came via a blog post, reprinted here, by Lim Sheng Ming. The blog post was based on an article, reprinted in full here, that was published in the Borneo Bulletin and reprinted on the Brunei Direct website. As the article mentions, Brunei is getting its Talking ATMs after Standard Chartered Bank successfully launched them in Korea, China, India and Indonesia. Visit the International Issues category of this website for other posts about ATM installations outside the United States. The ATM industry is global, and advocacy must be too. Read more… Talking ATMs in Brunei, Southeast Asia

Finally: U.S. Talking ATM Regulations Fully in Force

Posted on Updated on March 10, 2016
On March 15, 2012, federal regulations with detailed Talking ATM requirements will finally be mandatory. The Talking ATM standards come at the end of a long (and continuing) road of grass-roots and legal advocacy in the U.S. and around the globe. March 15, 2012 is more than twelve years after the first Talking ATM was installed in the United States. Tens of thousands of ATMs now talk, but still too many do not. Read more… Finally: U.S. Talking ATM Regulations Fully in Force

Consumer World Publishes Boston Talking ATM Survey

Posted on Updated on March 10, 2016
On April 24, 2012, Consumer World, a consumer education organization based in Massachusetts, published the results of its survey on Talking ATM and talking fare machines in Boston. The results show that far too many ATMs and fare machines are still not accessible to people with visual impairments. One bank that is doing a good job? Bank of America, where every ATM tested was a working Talking ATM. Read more… Consumer World Publishes Boston Talking ATM Survey

Talking ATMs in India

Posted on Updated on March 10, 2016
The June 6, 2012 Google Alert for Talking ATMs included a news report, posted below, of the “first” Talking ATM in India. It was not the first time the Indian press covered accessible ATMs though. In September 2011 the Hindu Business Times reported on the experience of using a Talking ATM for the first time, but on closer read last Fall’s story may just have been describing temporary installations. Whether or not Union Bank of India has installed the first or second Talking ATM, congratulations go out to advocates in the Indian blind community and that country’s banking industry for recognizing the importance of accessible technology. Read more… Talking ATMs in India

NCR Installs Additional Talking ATMs in India (with solar power option too!)

Posted on Updated on March 10, 2016
The article posted here about NCR’s Talking ATMs in India first appeared in the Hindu Business Line. The Law Office of Lainey Feingold, and Linda Dardarian, first engaged with NCR in the mid-1990’s as the Talking ATM initiative was getting underway in the United States. This story about NCR’s Talking (and solar-powered!) ATMs demonstrates yet again that accessibility is an international issue. Accessible technology that starts in one country is bound to make its way around the world. The technology corporations are global, advocacy needs to be too. Blind advocates are not mentioned in the story below, but no doubt they played an important role in efforts to bring independent access to financial services to India. Read more… NCR Installs Additional Talking ATMs in India (with solar power option too!)