Disabled Seats Not Available When We Arrived.

~~TJN~~

Hi, I have a query, and I'd like to know what you think.

I went online and booked two tickets in the wheelchair bay/space platform at the back of the cinema in Cineworld It's a separate small room on the back wall with a viewing window that I think is accessed via a lift.

I've never booked this room before and was excited to try it out, since it's more private and a good view.

When we arrived, we were shown to the auditorium and given a space right at the front row of the cinema. When we asked about the seats we booked at the back (which is in a room behind the cinema), we were told that this auditorium didn't have that specific seating area. But strangely and most annoyingly, we were able to book them, and wouldn't have booked the seats right at the front, had we of known the seats at the back were not available.

We didn't want to make a fuss at the young kid, because what could he do? If the room wasn't there, he could hardly magic it into existence. So we stayed for the whole film, uncomfortably too close to the screen. And for me, in a wheelchair, there's nowhere to rest my head when looking up for so long, so I had neck ache too.

I know it's not third world problems, but my issue is more to do with being able to book specific tickets that were available to book online, but not available when we arrived. Just because I am in a wheelchair I shouldn't have to feel that I have 'no choice' other than to accept the seats I paid for were not actually available — these tickets were an option to pay for online, so why should I accept they were taken away from me when I arrive to watch the film?

I emailed them asking them to look into why this happened. They wrote back asking for more details, I sent them, and today I've received another email from them saying:

"Please be advised that if you stayed in the auditorium for the full duration of the performance, we will be unable to provide you with any refund/compensation".

Yes, we watched the film all the way through, but we're not trying to just get a couple of free seats back, we were out for the evening as part of a special occasion. We simply didn't want to ruin our evening and make a fuss. Plus, the kid didn't seem like he knew how to help as he was so young and didn't give us any alternative options to help us further at the time.

However, is it stupid of me to want more of an explanation as to why I was able to book specific seats online in the first place? Why should I, as a wheelchair user, have to just accept this? It feels unfair and unjust, and to be quite frank, it also feels like discrimination.

I'm not so bothered about the compensation, a couple of tickets is not that much of a big deal, but I'm more bothered about the fact that other wheelchair users who book these seats may also have this happen to them, and just have to accept it. How do I know if I book these seats again, the same thing won't happen again?

What do you think? Should I write back and say I don't care so much about compensation, but I would like an explanation as to why this happened, in the hope that this will be looked into and not happen again to me or someone else.

Just because we are wheelchair users, I cannot help but feel like we don't matter, and they shrugged this off as something they can't or don't want to do anything about.

If it were the other way around, and all the seats in the cinema were booked by people online wanting specific seats and they all got given random seats they didn't want, I think they'd be several more complaints and they'd have to deal with it. But because I am one person in a wheelchair, they can just ignore my request for an explanation and basically shut me down without any explanation as to why this happened.

What would you do? Am I being silly over a couple of cinema seats, or should I insist they explain?

la531983

No dont think you are being silly. Simply clarify you arent after a refund and would like to know why this "room" is bookable when it clearly doesnt exist.

Brie

I wonder if the words "disability discrimination" would have any effect on getting you a better response.

Too many services say if you need something different then "just click here" and it either takes you to something non existent or puts you in a loop back to general customer service. I've had this with airlines when trying to book special assistance and got a message pop up to say someone would contact me within 48 hours - no one did. The fact that there is a disconnect between what is said online and what exists in reality needs to be addressed.

Okell

Did you pay an additional fee over and above standard cinema admission for this supposedly dedicated wheelchair user space?

If you did then that additional fee should be refundable.

If you didn't pay extra then - unfortunately - I think the cinema is probably technically correct.

Of course that's unacceptable for wheelchair uses and really shows Cineworld in a really bad light. They might not be legally required to, but they morally ought to have given you a full refund.

What you should have done in the law's eyes - and I fully understand why you didn't want to - was to leave when they couldn't offer you what you'd booked.

I think if I were you I'd go back to Cineworld and compalin to them that they had not made reasonable adjustments under the Equality Act for you as a wheelchair user with a disability. In particular, placing you in the front row rather than at the back of the auditorium caused you additional discomfort because of the nature of your disability. Cinema staff should have made more of an effort to accommodate you and your particular needs as a wheelchair user. Probably won't work but worth a try. [Edit: As @Brie suggests, use the phrase "disability discrimination"]

Do local authorities have something like an Equalities or a disabilities officer who is responsible for ensuring that local service providers make reasonable adjustments for people with disabilities? If so I'd let cineworld know i'd be complaining to them.

Also is having wheelchairs in an open auditorium a fire hazard?

[Edit: Not relevant to the OP's problem but we stopped going to the cinema years ago as we were sick and tired of listening to people engaging in conversations, endless opening and unwrapping of sweets, munching of popcorn etc etc. Why pay through the nose for a ruined evening or afternoon?]

eskbanker

I went online and booked two tickets in the wheelchair bay/space platform at the back of the cinema in Cineworld It's a separate small room on the back wall with a viewing window that I think is accessed via a lift.

I've never booked this room before and was excited to try it out, since it's more private and a good view.

Just to be clear, this sounds like a fairly specific description for something that may or may not exist - is this taken from their website and does it apply to each of the screens in the (presumably) multiplex, rather than being associated only with a subset?

SiliconChip

"[Edit: Not relevant to the OP's problem but we stopped going to the cinema years ago as we were sick and tired of listening to people engaging in conversations, endless opening and unwrapping of sweets, munching of popcorn etc etc. Why pay through the nose for a ruined evening or afternoon?]"

As Mark Kermode says, you shouldn't eat anything at the cinema that makes more noise than a soft roll 😀

Actually it could be relevant if the OP is also fed up of all those things (as they should be, it can be very annoying) because watching from a separate, private room could well have meant not having to put up with that. Even if they don't care about what other people do it might be something to add weight to the complaint.

sammyjammy

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81902247#Comment_81902247

Thats not the point, it clearly didn't apply to this screen but they allowed her to book and pay for those seats/that room that didn't exist.

OP Take it to the papers! Sometimes name and shame is the only way to deal with some companies

Aylesbury_Duck

Sounds like a lazy approach to the booking system, where they can't be bothered to differentiate between cinemas.

I think you're absolutely right to expect an explanation. As you say, it's not the end of the world, but these small things have a habit of creeping in and becoming acceptable practice unless someone points them out and is firm in their expectation that things are addressed so others aren't inconvenienced.

eskbanker

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81902291#Comment_81902291

Yes, as you say, ultimately the key issue is that a booking was permitted that apparently couldn't be honoured, but I was simply trying to tease out whether it's one small inadvertent glitch with the way a system is configured or a more serious wider matter of knowingly misrepresenting their facilities, as the level of detail OP goes into might imply the latter.

sheramber

Have you confirmed that these seats are not available in the cinema you went to , and it wasn’t a case of a young employee not knowing about them?

Emmia

At my local multiplexes the wheelchair "seats" tend to be a couple of rows from the back and are usually seatless spaces at the end of the row, rather than a private viewing area/room.

Was the front row position like this or were you effectively in the aisle?

Edit: The room you're describing sounds more like the projectionists booth rather than an area accessible to paying customers.

Which Cineworld & screen?