I am not an attorney, but I believe that you are wrong here. There is nothing illegal in setting age limits for activities. Many activities have age limits, including driving, smoking, drinking, solo air travel, movie admittance, etc. It's not age discrimination!
The difference is that those are all things that are voluntary - no one has to do them and the community has decided it is in the best interest of children and society in General not to allow children of a certain age to do them.
And, a car is a very dangerous piece of equipment, capable of going 100 miles an hour or more. It can do great damage if not used correctly and is out on the road with other vehicles that can do the same - people get killed every day in car crashes.
Most ECVs have a top speed of 4.5 miles per hour. Yes, they can do damage, but not tonthe same level as a car.
A child with a disability using their own
ECV or power wheelchair is using that to replace their legs. Not allowing it would be like taking away their legs. That is why it would be illegal to just arbitrarily decide you must be a certain age to use one.
I didn't have time to look up the law, but Goofy14sure quoted the part I would have cited.
In my opinion the only way Disney could prevent children from using their own ECV would be to, like Sue noted, prove that the operation of an
ECV by a child is dangerous to safe operations. ADA.gov sums it up with "Safety requirements may be imposed only if they are necessary for the safe operation of a place of public accommodation. They must be based on actual risks and not on mere speculation, stereotypes, or generalizations about individuals with disabilities. For example, an amusement park may impose height requirements for certain rides when required for safety." Until that time they need to be made aware that NOT all EVC and power chair users are over 18. The managers should at least know to give you a sticker without a hassle.
I don't know about the approval process for getting insurance or other payers to cover an ECV, but I can tell you about it for a power wheelchair there are a lot of hoops to go thru.
First, her teachers and school therapists observed that, although she could propel her manual wheelchair, it was slow and tiring for her and she could not go long distances. We contacted her doctor and got approval for a power mobility evaluation. During that, she saw an Occupational and Physical Therapist to see whether she could safely use a power mobilty device and what kind. Then came therapy sessions to try one/learn how to use one in a controlled environment.
After that, we got one to trial and the therapists and doctor wrote up a justification and proof of medical necessity to send to the insurance company.
The whole evaluation and approval process took about 8 weeks. And, then we had to wait for the power wheelchair to arrive.
When she got a new one, we had to go thru the process again - partly to prove it was still medically necessary, but also because she changed from a rear wheel drive to a mid wheel drive one.
I imagine the process is a little less involved for an ECV than a power wheelchair because ECVs are less expensive and easier to use.
(Note, I'm not a lawyer either.)
Well, it's not strictly speaking an age issue, but an intersection of age and handicapped status. Disney could say no people under the age of 18 could tour the parks and that would be legally OK. They could try to say that no-one with a handicap that requires an certain accommodations could tour the parks, but in order to do that legally, they would need to prove an overriding reason, such as banning Segways because they put the safety of other guests at risk. But in that case, they still had to provide an alternative (standing 4-wheel scooters) that fulfilled the same need as the Segway, but in a safer manner.
But what they are saying is that no children under the age of 18 with a handicap that requires certain accommodations may tour the park. Again, for that prohibition to be legal probably requires the same level of proof as for the Segway. They would have to prove that children who have been using an ECV daily for independent mobility are, none-the-less, a safety risk to other guests. And that's going to be hard to prove. If they try to say an 8 year old who has been using an ECV for hours a day, on his own, for an extended period, is too dangerous to allow in the park, but adults who have never used an ECV before are not, that's not going to be easy.
I think that even having a proficiency test that only kids are subject to, would be on shaky ground. I think the most they could do is require a statement that the child uses the ECV regularly and is proficient, and then if the child proves to be a danger to others, revoke his access at that point.
Note, that whether a child can rent an ECV is an entirely different matter, involving liability and insurance matters with the renting company. But if he has his own, those issues do not apply.
Agree with everything.
And you are correct that renting is a different situation. By renting, the company has some liability, even though the renter signs a rental agreement (minors can't sign a legal contract/agreement themselves). There is at least one company, Randy's, that will rent to some older minors, but they do personal delivery and do an assessment at the time of delivery.
Since children grow fairly quickly he will grow into this scooter and eventually not need anything for his feet However even then he will still be under 18 driving a scooter.
He may only be 8, but since he uses his 
but I had given them my cell number to call) He says he has "Good news" so I won't have to deal with this again. He wanted me to call him back so he could let me know what the have put in place. I called and left him a message with a time frame that I am available to chat tomorrow. I will post their solution once I hear back.
