The Landscape of Web Accessibility Lawsuits: A Closer Look
To help your clients better understand the importance of accessibility, there are some important guidelines they should follow. For more information about these guidelines and lawsuits where accessibility were at the forefront, please continue reading below. We will cover what you need to know about web accessibility and who you can contact for more information.
Website Accessibility Laws
In 1990, President George Bush signed the Americans with Disabilities Act. This prohibited discrimination against differently-abled people. This civil rights law prohibits employers, public services, and public accommodations from discriminating against those with disabilities.
Website accessibility falls under the Title III portion of the ADA, making it against the law to discriminate against disabled people from being able to use public services. Although website accessibility falls under Title III, no current formal laws enforce website accessibility.
To avoid the possibility of web accessibility lawsuits, businesses generally adhere to WCAG guidelines to meet ADA compliance for web accessibility. There are no specific laws in place to monitor web accessibilities because websites aren't explicitly declared as a public accommodation.
Major Web Accessibility Lawsuits
There are several different high-profile cases that have made the headlines because their website design lacked accessibility options for differently-abled people.
Netflix
For example, in 2012, the National Association of the Deaf filed a lawsuit against Netflix because they did not have an adequate amount of closed captioning on most of its content. At that time, Netflix was the only online movie-watching service, and they did not reasonably calculate the needs of every one of its users.
Nike
Nike faced a lawsuit in 2017 because their website was inaccessible to visually impaired people, violating the Title III website accessibility rules. Visually impaired individuals rely on screen-reading software to read text from a website out loud, so they know what is in front of them.
For this type of software to work, a website must be designed in a way that allows screen-reading software to be compatible with it. Nike failed to design their websites with this in mind, making it nearly impossible for the visually impaired to use its website without the assistance of someone else.
Amazon
Everyone's favorite go-to website for everything was sued in 2018 because of the accessibility challenges imposed on visually impaired people. Similar to Nike, these users' main complaint was that their screen readers could not read the information on the website or their app.
How To Build a Compliant Website
To ensure that your website or your client's website stays compliant, it is best to work with a company that thoroughly understands Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG). As mentioned earlier, there are no specific or formal laws for website accessibility, but that does not mean that you can't get sued by someone for not making your website accessible.
Do an Audit of the Website
Auditing your website is the most crucial first step to take in being compliant. When you run an audit on your website, you can pinpoint what issues you have and how you can fix them. If you are unsure how to address these issues, you can reach out to a specialist to explain to you the next steps to take.
Consistently Check and Update Your Website
As our digital landscape continues to advance, the needs of disabled people change too. With that in mind, it is crucial that you keep yourself up to date with the changing regulations and laws.
Data on ADA-based Cases
In 2021, there have been over ten claims a day where a company's website, video content, or mobile app was not compliant with ADA regulations. The average damage that a client claimed was about $400 under the Unruh Act.
Prep for More Than One Lawsuit
It wasn't uncommon for a company to face more than one ADA lawsuit. The first lawsuit typically entails how their website is not compliant, and the second goes for the mobile app.
It is possible for several different parties to pursue a lawsuit against a company. As a general rule, if one person could find fault in the design of a website or mobile app, there will be others who have encountered the same issue. No matter how often a settlement is reached, a company can receive multiple ADA lawsuits until the problem is fixed.
How To Help Clients Seeking Counsel
It is best to educate your clients about the potential issues with their websites if they lack accessibility options. Most companies focus more on their website designs and getting their businesses off the ground because of the demand for e-commerce. Instead of rushing to the finish line to get a website out into the world, you want to ensure your clients are well aware of web accessibility standards.
What Are Web Accessibility Standards?
Now that we've covered what makes a website accessible, let's apply that information, so your clients’ websites don't miss the mark. An excellent way to make a website more accessible is to offer an alternative way to consume media.
Many websites contain audio and video content to make the website more informational and interactive. If there is any audio content on your client's site, make sure they add a transcription of the audio. For any video content, it is best to add captions properly synced with the content and audio that is clear to hear.
Easy To Hear and See Content
As mentioned above, you want to ensure the content is clear. You also should ensure that the content is easy to see and read.
Some individuals are color blind and cannot see specific colors on a screen. If there is content that contrasts with particular colors, they may need help to be able to read it. To ensure that your clients stay compliant, the website should feature an option to adjust or turn off any audio.
Ample Time To Navigate Through Content
Users should be able to watch, use, and read website content without being rushed. If there are time limits to get through any content, users should have the option to extend or stop the time.
This also applies to any drop-down menus. The user should be able to navigate the drop-down menu without it disappearing quickly.
To ensure they can, it is recommended to have a time delay. This gives the user ample time to go back to the menu if they hover off the content.
Avoid the Possibility of Web Accessibility Lawsuits
In today's day and age, online shopping has become the new norm. From putting in food or item orders and picking them up the same day to setting up appointments for the local dentist, almost everyone has a website or an app for their business. Many people design their websites without accessibility in mind. This, unfortunately, can lead to web accessibility lawsuits.
To help ensure that you and your clients’ websites don't face a potential lawsuit, it is best to have website content audited to ensure it is accessible for all. Working with a reputable company, such as biz.builders, will ensure that your clients stay out of trouble when it comes to website accessibility laws. Contact us if you want to learn more about your client's website's current accessibility rating and how to make sure everyone can use their websites without any issues.