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.

Central and West Java in Indonesia gets First Talking ATMs

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International Talking ATM installations remind us that advocacy work done in one country can have ripple affects across the globe. ATM manufactures distribute their technology around the world, and slowly, slowly this technology is becoming more accessible everywhere. Today’s news brought word of the first Talking ATMs in Semarang, Central Java and Surabaya in East Java, Indonesia. The full news report, which first appeared in the Jakarta Post, is reprinted below. Visit the International Issues Category of LFLegal for more stories of Talking ATM installations outside the United States. Read more… Central and West Java in Indonesia gets First Talking ATMs

Talking ATM History: Litigation Plays a Role

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Structured Negotiations were not the only legal strategy used by blind advocates interested in expanding Talking ATM installations in the United States. In this post you can read about successful Talking ATM litigation that increased the numbers of Talking ATMs in the United States. Litigation also played another role in the history of Talking ATMs. On at least two occasions, the blind community was forced to object to class action settlements that did not fairly address the issue of accessible ATMs. Read about objections to class action settlements that threatened Talking ATM advocacy. Read more… Talking ATM History: Litigation Plays a Role

Blind Advocates in Islamabad, Pakistan Demand ATM Access

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In October, 1999, the first Talking ATM was installed in the United States. Ten years later, advocates around the world continue to push for equal and confidential access to financial information and technology. The following article appeared on August 6, 2009 in The International News, published in Islamabad, Pakistan. It is about a protest organized by blind activists in that city to protest banks’ refusal to issue ATM cards to blind consumers. Read more… Blind Advocates in Islamabad, Pakistan Demand ATM Access

Amy Vaughn: Bank of America Leader in Web Accessibility

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In 2000, Bank of America was the first bank in the United States to sign an agreement to make its web site and on-line banking accessible to people who are blind or visually impaired. In the almost eight years that have passed since the bank signed the first of three agreements with the blind community, significant work has been done both by members of the blind community and by countless Bank of America employees to make sure the agreements work as they are supposed to. Recently, we learned that one of those bank employees — Amy Vaughn — had died. Read more… Amy Vaughn: Bank of America Leader in Web Accessibility

LaSalle Bank Talking ATM and Web Press Release

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This press release was issued as a result of the LaSalle Bank Settlement Agreement which addressed ATMs, the bank’s website, and alternative formats. The agreement was negotiated using Structured Negotiations on behalf of the Chicago affiliate of the American Council of the Blind and Kelly Pierce, a long-time advocate for Talking ATMs and financial service access. The settlement was negotiated by Lainey and co-counsel Amy Peterson of the Chicago-based disability rights organization Equip For Equality. Read more… LaSalle Bank Talking ATM and Web Press Release

Citizens Bank Press Release

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The Citizen’s Bank press release was issued as a result of the Citizens Bank Agreement, negotiated by Lainey Feingold and co-counsel Stan Eichner of the Disability Law Center in Boston, Massachusetts, using Structured Negotiations on behalf of the Bay State Council of the Blind and other Massachusetts advocates. Read more… Citizens Bank Press Release

Bank One Final Agreement

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The Bank One Final Agreement was negotiated by Lainey Feingold and Linda Dardarian using Structured Negotiations on behalf of blind advocates Kelly Pierce and Anna Byrne. In the Agreement, Bank One (now Chase) agreed to install 1,500 Talking ATMs, institute a national alternative formats policy, and upgrade its website to comply with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) promulgated by the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) of the World Wide Web Consortium. As of March, 2008, Chase Bank, the successor to Bank One, had over 9,000 Talking ATMs. Read more… Bank One Final Agreement

Fleet Bank Second Talking ATM and accessible web site press release

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The press release posted below was the second release issued by Fleet Bank about its Talking ATMs. Read the first Fleet Bank Talking ATM press release. This release announced new Talking ATM features as well as the availability of Braille, Large Print and audio information and on-line accessibility at fleet.com. The releases were the result of two agreements that Fleet signed with Bay State Council of the Blind and others using the Structured Negotiations process. Read more… Fleet Bank Second Talking ATM and accessible web site press release

Sovereign Bank Press Release

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The Sovereign Bank Press Release was issued as a result of a comprehensive settlement agreement negotiated by Lainey Feingold and co-counsel Stan Eichner of the Disability Law Center in Boston, Massachusetts, using Bay State Council of the Blind and other Massachusetts advocates. In the Sovereign settlement agreement the bank agreed to install Talking ATMs at all its locations, institute a comprehensive alternative format policy and make its website accessible. Read more… Sovereign Bank Press Release