APRIL 15, 2020 – For Marie Beaupre it was an embarrassing moment as she drove up to the drive thru window at a local McDonalds.
All she wanted was that secret sauce and delight that is a McDonald’s Big Mac. Being on a limited income this was a treat for her.
With the COVID 19 Coronavirus shutting down normal access to restaurants she braved the elements as she had at other area fast food joints that offer drive thru service.
She said she’d never had an issue before, but this time she was turned away from the chain that’s served Billions.
We reached out multiple times to McDonalds media relations, but they did not respond.
CFN asked Ms Beaupre a few questions:
CFN
Have you driven your mobility scooter to McDonalds before?
MARIE
No. I had just gone through The Tim Hortons one and got an icecap but never the McDonalds one before. I was not aware of any policy preventing me from driving through.
CFN
What exactly did they tell you the reason for refusing you service was? Were there vehicles behind you in the line up?
MARIE
They said they could not take my order because I was not in a car. Yes, there were 3-4 behind me.
CFN
Did any of them honk at you or were rude? or positive?
MARIE
Nobody honked or were rude. Same as in the Tim Hortons drive thru, no drivers showed they had any issue.
CFN
So what made you decide to take a stand?
MARIE
I decided to take a stand because I felt discriminated against because I did not drive a car. I do not drive a car because I am unable to get a licence due to blindness in my left eye. My only other option was to use a delivery service that would raise the price of the Big Mac from $7.49 to $14.63
CFN
What are you hoping McDonalds does if you’re victorious?
MARIE
I am hoping they change their drive thru policy to enable people with disabilities to access their services.
Ms Beaupre did receive an email from McDonalds:
Hi Marie,
Thank you for taking the time to contact McDonald’s. We enjoy hearing from our guests, and we appreciate this opportunity to respond to your inquiry.
We would like to inform you that we cannot serve guests on motorcycles, scooters or foot and vehicles at the same outdoor service point. We have this policy in place with our guest’s safety in mind. Vehicles need to pull up close to drive-thru service points to complete their orders and there are no pavements or safe areas for these guest’s and vehicles may be too high up too see them. We do care about your business as much as we care for your safety. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused you.
Again, thank you for contacting McDonald’s. We hope to have the opportunity and pleasure of serving you soon.
Best Regards,
Vanessa
Guest Relations Specialist
1-888-424-4622
www.mcdonalds.ca
However they do seem to allow mobility scooters at McDonald’s in the UK?
Emails to Burger King and Wendy’s about this were not responded to either before publication.
She engaged Eastern Ontario’s foremost Paralegal James Moak of www.Cornwallparalegal.com to represent her. He sent in the following statement for publication:
This matter is an egregious act of discrimination by McDonald’s and it will be addressed to the full extent of the law especially during these trying times during which McDonald’s failed to accommodate the disabled public.
Do you think McDonald’s should allow mobility scooters to use their drive thrus? Especially during COVID 19? You can post your comment below.
You can also reach us at info@cornwallfreenews.com
I definitely think scooters should be allowed