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WASHINGTON - Ryan Honick uses a service dog named Pico to help make daily tasks easier for him. Because of Pico, he said Uber and Lyft drivers have gone to great lengths to deny him and his service dog a ride.
Honick, who has been living with cerebral palsy for 32 years, says both Uber and Lyft drivers have refused to let him and Pico into their cars, despite policies and federal law that say he can't be discriminated against because of his disability.
Honick has been documenting his encounters with Uber and Lyft drivers as they deny him and his dog a ride.
"Frustration and exhaustion are the two things that come to mind, frustration that this is still a battle that we fight and exhaustion because it happens so frequently," said Honick.
Pico was trained by Canine Companions for Independence and can complete tasks like turning lights on and off, picking up objects and opening doors and drawers for Honick.
Honick says he's had troubles with Uber more frequently and turned to Twitter to express his frustrations.
In the last few weeks Honick says Uber drivers have outright denied him service or caused an argument over his service dog.
He's documented those experiences with the camera on his phone and shared them on the social media site to raise awareness and encourage Uber to better enforce its policies.
In a sample video taken by Honick:
Honick: "Sir, it's federal law."
Driver: "I know it's federal law, but I can't take the dog if it's not in a cage."
Honick: "It's federal law."
Driver: "Yea I know, but it's gonna mess my car."
Honick says Uber permanently banned one driver who denied him service.
"I would like to see them adopt a zero tolerance policy that says if you do this, that's it," he said.
Uber told FOX 5 in a statement:
"We're upset about the experience described and are looking into it. Drivers who use the Uber app agree to accommodate riders with service animals and comply with all accessibility laws."