Accessible Customer Service Policy

Policy Number: 00031
Revision Date: February 19, 2025

Purpose

This policy adheres to the requirements set forth by the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA).

Policy

Our Commitment

WEINS Auto Group strives at all times to provide our goods and services in a way that respects the dignity and independence of people with disabilities.
Our commitment provides that all individuals shall have the same opportunity to access our goods and services, and benefit from the same services, in the same place and in a similar way.

Assistive Devices

Assistive technology is a term used to describe the various forms of devices — assistive, adaptive, and rehabilitative — used to support persons with disabilities in performing tasks they may not otherwise be able to accomplish.
Examples of assistive devices include hearing aids, speech amplification devices, white canes, wheelchairs, and screen readers. Ontario employers are not responsible for providing assistive devices under the Customer Service Standard, but are responsible for ensuring all employees are properly trained.
WEINS Auto Group will ensure that our staff are trained and familiar with the various assistive devices that may be used by customers with disabilities while accessing our goods and services.

Communication

Accessible customer service requires employees to recognize and work around the different barriers customers may face. Employees are trained on how to communicate effectively with customers with disabilities to ensure accessible goods and services.
WEINS Auto Group employees will communicate with people with disabilities in ways that take their disability into account.

Service Animals

For certain types of disabilities, an animal may serve as an assistive aid rather than a device. Service animals are trained to carry out tasks that help people with disabilities. The international assistance animal community recognizes three categories:
1. Guide animals – used to guide the blind
2. Hearing animals – used to signal the hearing impaired
3. Service animals – used to perform work for persons with disabilities other than blindness or deafness
Under the Customer Service Standard, service animals must be permitted in all areas of the premises open to the public (excluding certain areas such as a kitchen). Fines for denying a service animal access to public areas can reach up to $3,000 in Ontario.
WEINS Auto Group welcomes people with disabilities and their service animals when it is readily apparent the animal is used for reasons relating to the person's disability, or when the person provides a letter from a regulated health care professional confirming the need for a service animal.

Support Persons

Support persons help people with disabilities perform day-to-day tasks. Without this support, a person may not be able to access our organization. All support persons are welcome on our premises.
A person with a disability who is accompanied by a support person will be allowed to have that person accompany them on our premises.
WEINS Auto Group may require a person with a disability to be accompanied by a support person only when necessary to protect the health or safety of that person or of others on the premises. We will consult with the person with a disability to understand their needs before requiring this.

Notice of Temporary Disruption

In the event of a planned or unexpected disruption to services or facilities for customers with disabilities, WEINS Auto Group will notify customers promptly. A clearly posted notice will include the reason for the disruption, its anticipated length, and a description of alternative facilities or services, if available. The notice will be posted at the point of service or facility disruption.

Training

Under the Customer Service Standard, all employees must be trained. WEINS Auto Group provides training to all employees, volunteers, and others who deal with the public or third parties on our behalf.
Our training includes:
- An overview of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005
- The requirements of the Customer Service Standard
- How to interact with people with various types of disabilities
- How to interact with people with disabilities who use an assistive device
- How to interact with people who use the assistance of a service animal
- How to interact with people who use a support person
- How to use any equipment or devices available at the workplace to assist in providing goods or services to persons with disabilities
- What to do if a person with a disability is having difficulty accessing our organization's goods or services
New employees are trained within 12 months of hire and retrained whenever changes are made to this policy.

Procedure

Feedback Process

A process is in place for receiving feedback on how we provide service to customers with disabilities, and how we respond to and act on complaints.
Customers who wish to provide feedback on the way WEINS Auto Group provides goods, services, or facilities to people with disabilities can contact our HR department by email at aoda@weinscanada.com, by phone at 905-475-1625, or by mail at 3120 Steeles Avenue East, Markham, ON, L3R 1G9.
All feedback, including complaints, is directed to the relevant General Manager. You can expect a response within ten (10) business days, in the manner in which the feedback was originally communicated.
If you require accessible formats or communication supports to give or receive feedback, please notify us using the contact information above.