A Florida lawsuit filed against Walt Disney World Resort alleges that a design flaw in the Under the Sea – Journey of The Little Mermaid queue at Magic Kingdom Park left a guest with a fractured bone and permanent injuries. The couple behind the suit is seeking $50,000 in compensation.
What Happened on August 7, 2024
The incident at the center of the lawsuit occurred on August 7, 2024, while Deborah Montgomery and her family waited in the queue for Under the Sea – Journey of The Little Mermaid in Fantasyland. Deborah, who suffers from chronic arthritis, was operating an ECV — an electric convenience vehicle, sometimes called a scooter — rented from the park as a mobility aid.
According to the legal filing, as the family moved through the cave-like queue, Deborah's foot became wedged in a crevice along the wall. The filing states the family was positioned at the bottom of a dramatic slope at the time, and that the crevice narrowed as the slope increased — trapping her foot in place.
The ECV continued moving forward while Deborah's foot remained stuck, resulting in injuries to her foot, ankle, and leg that included a fractured fibula, as well as what the lawsuit describes as “severe and permanent shock to her nervous system.”
The Montgomerys' attorney states that Deborah remains impaired and is “unable to continue and pursue a normal life” in the time since the incident, and that she has incurred significant medical expenses as a result of the injuries.
What the Lawsuit Argues
The legal filing places the responsibility for the incident squarely on Walt Disney World Resort, arguing that the resort “failed to provide a safe means through the queue, inspect the pathways, provide warning signs, and provide sufficient lighting, particularly for business invitees such as Deborah.”
Deborah's husband, Matthew Montgomery, is also named as a plaintiff. His portion of the lawsuit claims he was “deprived of the aide, comfort, society, and companionship of his wife” following the incident and suffered a loss of sleep and income while caring for Deborah and transporting her to and from medical appointments.
Together, the Montgomerys are seeking $50,000 in compensation. Walt Disney World Resort has not issued any public statement about the lawsuit.
Will this lawsuit against Walt Disney World Resort be successful? Share your opinion with Disney Fanatic in the comments!
I’m not sure of the language of the contract signed when the scooter is rented. I have used both the scooters from the parks and outside rentals. I found the scooters from the parks to be cumbersome. I do notice many of the scooter people to be obese which may lead to control issues in certain ques.
Curious what caused her to take her foot off the scooter and place it in the area of the “crevice” at all. Her choice to do that is a risk to her safety on its own. I’m not sure of that specific location but one might think had she kept her feet on the scooter this would have been prevented.
That said, I hope she is okay when all is said and done and “right” (whatever that ends up being) prevails.
I’ve rented scooter inside disney parks and outside the park’s. On both you have to keep both feet with in the scooter not outside of the scooter or you will hurt yourself or this case hurt your leg. Plus you have to be very careful moving around the parks and resort and go slow so you can keep control of the scooter and some of those trun is very sharp so go slow and keep both feet in the scooter.