Kroger has come under fire for its ‘flyers’ gas station near Houston and has been hit with a lawsuit filed by a mother and daughter who claim they were denied service because they were not registered as members of the company’s gas loyalty program.
The lawsuit claims that the gas station had been “blocked from the gas loyalty programme” and was a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
According to the lawsuit, the “blocking” occurred on January 20, 2016, and it was not until February 13, 2016 that the store’s manager, Mark Hager, discovered the gas bottle was missing.
Hager says in the lawsuit that the manager told him that the company had “banned” members of its loyalty program from using the store.
“I was shocked, shocked that I could have been denied service from the store, and I asked if I could be turned around,” Hager said.
“The manager said no,” Hagers mother told ABC News.
The mother and her daughter have not yet filed a lawsuit, but they are seeking class-action status.
“We’ve been trying to get a court to issue a ruling on this lawsuit for years, and now the court has finally done it,” Hagan told ABC.
“It’s a great example of how we need to get government out of the way.”
Hager, who owns the gas store, said the manager never told him about the “flyer” gas bottle being missing until the lawsuit was filed.
“There was a mistake made and that mistake has been corrected and I’ve never had any issues,” he said.
Hagan said he has been “disappointed” in the court ruling, but said he believes that he and his family will prevail in the case.
“As long as the government does nothing, I’m OK with that,” Haggins mother said.
“But if they come and take away our rights, then it’s just going to be an uphill battle.”
The Kroger spokesperson told ABC that the retailer does not have a “special treatment” for customers with disabilities.
“Kroger does not discriminate on the basis of disability in the hiring, firing, promotion or promotion processes,” the statement said.