However, in recent years, there have been a number of court cases in the US where plaintiffs have argued that inaccessible websites violate ADA requirements. Court rulings have been inconsistent. In some cases, courts ruled that websites can be considered places of public accommodation under the ADA and
must be accessible to people with disabilities. In other cases, courts ruled in favor of businesses that chose not to remediate their digital assets.
This has led to growing calls from human rights groups and politicians to resolve this issue and enact specific laws that will explicitly address web accessibility, thus avoiding any ambiguity.
However, bills
are underway in Congress and national web accessibility legislation may be implemented in the near future.
Also worth mentioning is that although the ADA does not explicitly stipulate website accessibility, the
Department of Justice (DOJ), which is responsible for enforcing the ADA, has indicated that websites are covered by the ADA. But the DOJ has not yet issued specific regulations or guidelines for website accessibility under the ADA.
What should you do?
Despite the lack of specific regulations or guidelines, many organizations are choosing to make their websites accessible in order to avoid potential legal issues and to promote digital inclusion. In addition, many states have their own laws and regulations related to web accessibility, which may apply to websites regardless of whether the ADA specifically applies.
As we recently brought to our customers’ attention, ADA-related claims that reached the Federal court in 2022 have risen by 12 percent compared to 2021 and this trend is only growing.
Furthermore, most claims are preceded with demand letters that settle outside the courts, anywhere between the range of $7,000 to $30,000, according to various estimates. Hence, the actual number of ADA claims throughout the nation is significantly higher than the official number.
Cases that do reach the court should know that in addition to settlement costs, organizations may also need to pay for legal fees, remediation costs to make their website accessible, and potential damage to their reputation. This is why many organizations choose to prioritize web accessibility and take proactive steps to ensure that their websites are accessible to people with disabilities, in order to reduce the risk of potential legal claims and associated costs.
ADA standards
Even though the ADA does not stipulate a specific standard for website accessibility, the
Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 are widely recognized as the international standard for web accessibility and are often used as a reference point in ADA-related lawsuits.
WCAG 2.1 provides a set of guidelines for making web content more accessible to people with disabilities. The guidelines are organized into three levels of conformance: A, AA, and AAA, with level A being the minimum level of conformance and level AAA the highest.
In general, it is recommended that organizations strive to meet
WCAG 2.1 level AA conformance. This means that the website meets all level A and level AA success criteria. However, it is also important to note that web accessibility is an ongoing process, and organizations should continue to monitor and improve the accessibility of their websites over time.
EqualWeb offers two main plans for web accessibility compliance, guaranteeing the meeting of
ADA standards and requirements for businesses of all sizes and websites of all complexities and all platforms.
Click here to view the EqualWeb accessibility solutions.
