Few Companies Meet Accessibility Standards

Though 55 percent of companies worldwide recognize that they must prioritize the needs of people with disabilities by instituting accessible website features, few are actually doing so, Software Advice found in a new survey.

As the European Union gets set to begin enforcement of the European Accessibility Act (EAA) next year, survey data indicates only 39 percent of companies under EAA jurisdiction (including U.S. companies that do business in Europe) have implemented plans to meet the upcoming compliance deadline of June 28, 2025. For most, budget constraints and training pose the most significant challenges to effectively following through, but others include IT and software complexities and a lack of awareness about digital accessibility requirements or needs, the survey found.

To date, nearly a quarter (24 percent) of surveyed companies that trade in the European Union do not provide any digital accessibility features, such as text resizing, video captions, and text-to-speech, on their websites, and the majority of this group (74 percent) say improving digital accessibility is a medium to low priority.

Companies slow to comply with the EAA and similar legislation being proposed around the world increasingly risk losing a core audience, resulting in both damaging economic and legal consequences, according to Software Advice.

Strategic planning for digital accessibility features is critical for companies to offer everyone equal access to online information and services, including content, financial tools, government services, and shopping, it says.

“People with disabilities have a right to receive equal access to company websites and have a full customer experience with improved digital accessibility features,” says Molly Burke, senior retail analyst at Software Advice. “Companies who dedicate themselves to doing the legwork, plan ahead, and recognize accessibility is a lifestyle not a product will have a strong chance at retaining this key consumer audience and fostering a fully inclusive environment.”

Software Advice urges companies to look toward guidelines, such as the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG), and human collaboration with artificial intelligence-powered accessibility testing tools to help them with the planning process.