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GET STARTEDDigital Accessibility Index: Learn where the world’s leading brands fall short on accessibility.
See ReportIn today’s world, owning and operating a website that doesn’t provide the same services to a disabled person that it provides to others, is called discrimination. Learn about website accessibility and how to prevent lawsuits in this ultimate guide to web accessibility.
Web accessibility lawsuits against business owners, academic institutions and government services that fail to accommodate people with disabilities, are increasing at an alarming rate.
Not long ago, plaintiffs’ attorneys would use the Americans With Disabilities Act (the “ADA”) to file suit against brick-and-mortar facilities. The claims would often be based on drive-by inspections to uncover the ADA violations. This theme has evolved to the web.
Just as physical locations without ramps prevent people with wheelchairs from accessing a building, websites that don’t provide users with disabilities with the opportunity to receive the same experience as other viewers put the disabled at a disadvantage by ignoring their needs and excluding them.
The 2010 Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) outlines digital accessibility requirements for companies in the U.S. The ADA is a set of laws put in place to prevent discrimination against people with disabilities in all areas of public life such as work, school, and transport services. The Department of Justice has also made it very clear that the ADA extends to people’s right to use the Internet and online services.
Good news: Coding an ADA-compliant website is achievable with minimal expense and minimal impact on usability or design — if some basic guidelines and strategies are followed. The following list details the best ways to avoid the seven most common web accessibility issues.
For most people, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) conjures up pictures of physical accommodations such as wheelchair ramps near building entrances, handicapped parking spaces, and the use of braille writing on signs and placards. These measures have been tremendously valuable in helping the 56.7 million Americans living with disabilities thrive within society.
As technology occupies an increasingly large role in everyday life, however, it’s clear that the protections of the ADA need to extend into online spaces as well.