Fingerscans/autism

[connie254]

Last time we were at WDW, my son could not do the fingerscans and usually the CM overrode it for him(I was behind him, put the ticket in for him and told him to put his fingers in and squeeze, sometimes it worked, sometimes not). Well this time he'll be 17. I'll still do the same thing but am wondering if having the GAC visible for the CM to see might help. I may or may not have an a state ID for him by then.

I do have to say that since the autism awareness, all I have to say is "He has autism" and that helps immensely. Even helped at the security when the security person INSISTED each person MUST have their own ticket and no one should carry it for them. Yeah right, most normal kids wouldn't be resonsible of carrying it like they insisted. Oh by the way, this was also were we had to take off our shoes-so most of us were carrying our shoes, holding out ID and the tickets and managing our carry-ons,some people were holding their little ones too. Not the most appropiate place for security to demand that. Some of the security understood when I said that and actually asked that I stay near by if he got picked to be wanded to help out with the cues.

 

[SueM in MN]

You should not have any problem with him not doing the finger scan if you tell them he can't do it because of autism.
You'll be glad to hear that the finger scan has changed to something that is much easier. Instead of putting two fingers in and squeezing, you only need one finger. There is a little pad where the finger squeeze place was before. You lay one fingertip on top of it. A blue light comes on and 'reads' your fingertip. If it 'reads' correctly and the finger matches what is in the computer, a green light comes on, the ticket shoots thru the machine and you can push the turnstile to get thru.
It's MUCH easier and it very seldom has a problem. The biggest thing to remember is to always use the same finger.

 

[nov02mom]

What is a fingerscan?

 

[PatMcDuck]

We never use the fingerscan with my son Sean (now 18). He has Down syndrome and autism. He would never let us fingerscan him. He is usually in a wheelchair when we arrive at the park gates, too.

A side benefit is that we can swap passes with Sean if we need to, lol, since he is not linked to any one pass.

 

[SueM in MN]

What is a fingerscan?

It's a little hard to explain without seeing it, so if my explanation doesn't make sense, ask more questions.
The very first time you use a ticket, you place your ticket in the machine and your finger is scanned by another part of the machine. The scan picks out some identifying points on the finger. The 'scan' is stored in a central computer and matched with the ticket the person used.
The next time you put your ticket into the machine and then have your finger scanned, the scan is compared with the 'scan' that is stored in the computer for that ticket. If it matches, the ticket goes thru the machine, a green light goes on and the turnstile will turn to let you into the park. If it doesn't match, a Cast Member will come to the machine to figure out the problem.

The old way of scanning involved sliding the index finger and the next finger into the machine, which had a piece the fit between the fingers. Then you had to squeeze the 2 fingers together and the scan looked at the knuckle bones. That system had a lot of problems - sometimes people's fingers were not in straight or were not in the same position.
The new system uses one finger - you touch your fingertip to a small plate on the machine and a scan is taken of your fingertip. A part of that scan is saved and is compared the next time the ticket is used.

 

[nov02mom]

Thanks Sue! Do the tickets have names or some identifying mark on them? I was thinking I'd just hold on to all 4 of our groups tix, but this makes me nervous.

 

[LauraVV]

They never even asked to do finger scan of me (in EVC) or my daughter (in Convaid Cruiser). Nothing was marked and nobody even asked. It took me a few days to realize they even had a finger scan because I hadn't noticed they were scanning hubby and son.

 

[LarryBoy]

Thanks Sue! Do the tickets have names or some identifying mark on them? I was thinking I'd just hold on to all 4 of our groups tix, but this makes me nervous.

If you stay on property, your room key is your park pass also. So yes they do have your name on them. You have to run your pass through the turnstile for each person entering the park. If you have a small child in a stroller or an adult in a wheelchair, ECV, etc., they will just run it through the machine for you. The magnetic strip on the card remembers your first finger scan, and it should match after that.

As for entering with a special needs guest, Disney is usually very accommodating so you shouldn't have any problems. My son is autistic and had no problems. Of course he is only seven, so I can't remember if they even make children use the scanner. It wouldn't hurt to have your GAC handy just for proof.

 

[SueM in MN]

My son is autistic and had no problems. Of course he is only seven, so I can't remember if they even make children use the scanner. It wouldn't hurt to have your GAC handy just for proof.

Child tickets never get scanned, so it is not even something you need to worry about until the child is old enough to have an adult ticket.
The GAC (Guest Assistance Card is just used for attractions, so showing one to the person at the turnstile is not going to really be helpful. It is not something those CMs deal with, so most will not be familiar with it.
They don't normally ask anyone using an ECV or wheelchair to use one because it's kind of difficult to get into position to reach the scanner while using the wheelchair/ECV.
We've had a lot of reports of people posting that they told the CM their child was autistic and had no problem with the child skipping the scan. So, I would just do that.

 

[Ms_Butterfly]

When my friend, using an ECV, and I, with my service dog, went last year, they did make both of us do the scan. Of course, we used the accessible door instead of the turnstile, but they did require the scan.

 

[SueM in MN]

When my friend, using an ECV, and I, with my service dog, went last year, they did make both of us do the scan. Of course, we used the accessible door instead of the turnstile, but they did require the scan.

The difference may be that most of the people who have written about not having to do the scan were larger parties and it sounds like your party was just 2, both using ECVs.
CMs have posted in the past that the scan is not stored on your park pass, but on a computer. The magnetic strip on your card accesses that computer. If you have a large party (like, let's say 4) who all purchased park passes together (which was the case for our party), the park passes are sort of tied together. So, if 3 people did finger scans that matched their previous scan, the 4th pass in that group is not so critical to get a scan on as it is if there are only 2 people in the group. It's also much easier to do a scan now because you can use any finger and just have to try to have it in the same position. The old scanners were hard for many people to get a good scan, even if they didn't have any disabilities. My DH is usually pushing DD's wheelchair thru the accessible door. She could do a finger scan, but has never been asked to.

For people who are not physically able to do a scan for some reason, the CMs can look at ID and match it to the park pass.
If you have park passes on your resort key or an annual passport, it will have your name printed on it. I'm not positive what park passes bought other ways have, but they do have a space for a signature.

 

[Schmeck]

We never use the fingerscan with my son Sean (now 18). He has Down syndrome and autism. He would never let us fingerscan him. He is usually in a wheelchair when we arrive at the park gates, too.

A side benefit is that we can swap passes with Sean if we need to, lol, since he is not linked to any one pass.

When someone else uses your son's pass, they will have a finger scan for that person, won't they? Then the pass is linked to that one person, and your son could be denied entry, as they could see that a fingerscan is linked to it. The ticket is also non-transferable, and could be denied for that reason.

 

[mechurchlady]

I agree with Schmeck. If Person A is not scanned and Person B uses that ticket then they have two options. To be scanned or being able bodied plead religious or moral objections to scanning. Once the person is scanned the ticket is theirs. I would not risk it and why would you need to use his ticket for someone else?

I think it was DLR that a bus would drop park and 10 people would enter the park the one would get a hand stamp and meet at the bus with the original 10 tickets. The would use that handstamp and then enter the park. Usually the handstamp got you back in the park and if not there was the back up tickets.

People do use the tickets of the person who is not riding a ride for a fastpass. A suggestion I have seen is to got to a store with a scanner and to roleplaying and pretend the child is at the airport or entering disney parks.

 

[terri01p]

My dd didn't finger scan either and they never pushed the subject.