www.microangelo.co.uk does the disability discrimination act (dda) include websites? matthew eaton...

www.MicroAngelo.co.uk

Does the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) include websites?

Matthew Eaton

Accessibility Specialist


Yes!

• A Website provides a service.

• The DDA Code of Practice – Part III mentions websites explicitly:


• 2.2 (p7): “The Disability Discrimination Act makes it unlawful for a service provider to discriminate against a disabled person by refusing to provide any service which it provides to members of the public.”


• 4.7 (p39): “From 1st October 1999 a service provider has to take reasonable steps to change a practice which makes it unreasonably difficult for disabled people to make use of its services.”


• 2.13 – 2.17 (p11-13): “What services are affected by the Disability Discrimination Act? An airline company provides a flight reservation and booking service to the public on its website. This is a provision of a service and is subject to the act.”


• 5.23 (p71): “For people with visual impairments, the range of auxiliary aids or services which it might be reasonable to provide to ensure that services are accessible should include … accessible websites.”


• 5.26 (p68): “For people with hearing disabilities, the range of auxiliary aids or services which it might be reasonable to provide to ensure that services are accessible should include … accessible websites.”


Have any website owners been successfully prosecuted?

• In the UK all cases of website inaccessibility have settled outside of court

• Probably because of:– Negative Publicity– High Cost of legal proceedings– Low cost of legal compliance

• The Sydney Olympics were fined Aus$20,000 under the Australian DDA, very similar to the UK DDA


Aside from the legal obligation

• There is a clear moral case

• There is also a very strong business case– Increase Market Share and Audience Reach– Improve usability for non-disabled and

disabled visitors– Improve Search Engine listings– Reduce site maintenance– Demonstrate Social Responsibility


The Business Case

• 8.5 million of the UK population have with some form of disability (source: ONS).

• 2 million of the UK population have some for of sight problem (source: RNIB).

• £40-50 billion - The combined estimated spending power of disabled people (source: Employers Forum on Disability).


Is my Website Accessible?

• Website Accessibility is a “sliding scale”

• Automated accessibility assessments can only test some aspects - manual checking is required to get a true idea of a website’s accessibility

• Please contact MicroAngelo to discuss your website’s accessibility


Costs

• Producing a website in an accessible way costs no more than producing a website in an inaccessible way, and can save money in the long term due to reduced update costs

• Some aspects of an accessible website can only be implemented in the design phase – you cannot retro-fit them into an inaccessible website

• Attempting to retro-fit website accessibility is not cost effective


How can I make sure my website will be accessible?

• Choose your web development company carefully.

• Very few web development companies have the expertise to create an accessible website.

• There is no recognised industry certification or accreditation to differentiate between web development companies.

www.microangelo.co.uk does the disability discrimination act (dda) include websites? matthew eaton...

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