Walt Disney World has announced a crackdown on sneaky guests who claim to have false medical conditions to avoid the park’s long lines.
Both Disney resorts in California and Florida will issue lifetime bans to park guests who lie about disabilities, as the park updated its Disability Access Service (DAS) program on Tuesday.
On their official website, one of the FAQs says: ‘What happens if any of the statements made by a Guest in the DAS registration process turn out to be untrue?’
“If any of the statements a guest made in the process of obtaining DAS are determined to be untrue, the guest will be permanently banned from Walt Disney World Resort and Disneyland Resort,” the response reads.
Those visitors will also be permanently prohibited from using previously purchased annual passes, Magic Key passes, tickets and other park products, officials said, adding that the services will be forfeited and will not be refunded.
Walt Disney World has announced a crackdown on sneaky guests who claim to have false medical conditions to avoid the park’s long lines.
Both Disney resorts in California and Florida will issue lifetime bans to park guests who lie about disabilities, as the park updated its Disability Access Service (DAS) program on Tuesday.
The new rule is part of the policy change announced Tuesday for Disney’s DAS program, which aims to “help guests who have difficulty tolerating long waits in a conventional queuing environment due to a disability.”
The changes will go into effect on June 18 at Disneyland in Anaheim, California, and May 20 at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida, according to KTLA.
Under the updated DAS program, guests with developmental disabilities such as autism would not be able to wait in line.
Instead, guests will be assigned a spot in line and instructed to return at a designated time for an experience comparable to the current standby wait.
DAS use in parks has tripled in the last five years, according to Nexstar’s Scott Gustin.
Gustin wrote after the updated policy was announced: “I hope these changes help reduce misuse of the system that has negatively impacted the experience of guests who truly need the service.”
But park officials did not specify how Disneyland would detect disability fraud, as reported by the Orange County Register.
According to Disney’s website, guests must contact a cast member via live video chat or in person at the park before registering for DSA.
DSA registration is valid for the duration of the ticket or up to 120 days, and existing DAS pass holders will need to reapply.
The new rule is part of the policy change announced Tuesday for Disney’s DAS program, which aims to “help guests who have difficulty tolerating long waits in a conventional queuing environment due to a disability.”
Under the updated DAS program, guests with developmental disabilities such as autism or similar will not be allowed to wait in line. Instead, guests will be assigned a spot in line and instructed to return at a designated time for an experience comparable to the current standby wait.
Tips to exploit and deceive the DAS program have proliferated on social media in recent years, with some users sharing their experiences claiming false medical conditions to acquire the DAS pass.
One I don’t want to wait in line. ‘
Another user chimed in as he wrote: ‘I don’t claim to be an expert on this and what is right or wrong, but the abuse of this service at WDW is off the charts.
He added: ‘I’m told that a ridiculously high proportion of LL scans are DAS; much higher than any national trend would lead one to expect.
Fans and visitors to Disney parks have applauded the policy since its announcement, expressing hope that it will help guests who really need the service.
“Honestly, the abuse is very, very disrespectful to people who really need it,” one user wrote.
They added: ‘There are children in our families with disabilities whose doctors say they “qualify” for it and the parents refuse to do so because, despite the disabilities, they can queue without problems. I wish the rest of society behaved like this.