ACCESSIBILITY COMPLIANCE GUIDE
Your website might have a legal problem. Here's how to fix it.
If your business has a website, app, or digital documents, accessibility laws probably apply to you. This guide explains what that means, what's at stake, and where to start — no technical background required.
The Basics
What is website accessibility?
Website accessibility means making your site usable by everyone — including people who are blind, deaf, have motor disabilities, cognitive differences, or use assistive technology like screen readers. Most accessibility problems don't look like problems until you encounter them from a different perspective.
Here's what an inaccessible website actually looks like in practice:
The blind visitor
A person uses a screen reader — software that reads the page aloud. Your product images have no text descriptions. The screen reader says "image" with no context. Your website, to this person, is a wall of silence.
The keyboard-only user
Someone with a motor disability navigates entirely by keyboard. Your dropdown menu only opens on mouse hover. They can't access half your navigation. They leave — and don't come back.
The low-vision visitor
Your designer chose light gray text on a white background because it looks modern. Someone with low vision can't read it. They can increase font size in their browser, but nothing helps when the contrast ratio is simply too low.
The person with epilepsy
You added an auto-playing banner animation to your homepage. It flashes at a rate that can trigger seizures in some people. There's no way to pause it. This is not just bad UX — it can cause physical harm.
Approximately 1 in 4 U.S. adults — 61 million people — live with a disability. In the EU, that number is approximately 87 million people. These aren't edge cases or niche audiences. They're a quarter of your potential customers.
Why It Matters
Three reasons accessibility isn't optional
It's the law
In the U.S., the ADA has been interpreted by courts to cover websites. In the EU, the European Accessibility Act took effect in June 2025. Section 508 applies to any organization that receives or contracts with federal funding. These aren't suggestions — they have real legal consequences attached.
It's a real business risk
Over 4,000 ADA website accessibility lawsuits were filed in the U.S. in 2023. Small businesses are targeted as often as large ones. The average cost to defend a single lawsuit — even if you win — runs $10,000–$50,000 in legal fees. Settlements for small businesses typically range from $5,000 to $25,000. 71% of users with disabilities will leave a website that's difficult to use.
It's the right thing to do
25% of your potential customers, employees, and partners have a disability. An inaccessible website sends a message — even if you don't intend it. The disability community has over $1 trillion in annual disposable income in the U.S. alone. Accessibility isn't charity. It's basic respect, and it's good business.
The Legal Landscape
What laws apply to you?
Here's a plain-English breakdown of the major accessibility regulations — and who they affect.
ADA — Americans with Disabilities Act
If you operate a business that serves the public, your website almost certainly falls under the ADA. Courts have consistently ruled that websites are "places of public accommodation." The ADA does not give a specific technical standard for websites, but courts typically look to WCAG 2.1 Level AA as the benchmark. This applies to businesses of all sizes — there is no small-business exemption for digital accessibility.
Section 508
Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act applies to federal agencies and any organization that receives federal funding or holds federal contracts. It covers websites, software, documents, and electronic communications. If your organization takes government money or sells to the government in any capacity, Section 508 applies to your digital content. The technical standard is WCAG 2.0 Level AA, with newer guidance pointing to WCAG 2.1.
European Accessibility Act (EAA)
Since June 2025, the EAA has required that products and services sold in the EU be accessible. This covers e-commerce, banking, transportation, telecommunications, streaming services, and more. If you have EU customers, this applies to you. Non-compliance can result in fines, mandatory remediation orders, and restrictions on selling in EU markets. Member states set their own enforcement mechanisms and penalty levels.
EN 301 549
EN 301 549 is the European technical standard that defines what "accessible" means in practice. If the EAA is the law, EN 301 549 is the rulebook. It incorporates WCAG 2.1 Level AA as its baseline for web content, plus additional requirements for software, hardware, and documents. Meeting EN 301 549 is the way you demonstrate compliance with the EAA.
Not sure which laws apply to you? If you have a website and customers — whether in the U.S., the EU, or both — at least one of these probably does. When in doubt, making your site accessible protects you regardless of jurisdiction, and signals good faith to any regulator or plaintiff.
The Standard
What does "compliant" actually look like?
The international standard for web accessibility is called WCAG — Web Content Accessibility Guidelines. Think of it as a checklist of things your website needs to do to be usable by everyone. The current version is WCAG 2.2, and most laws reference Level AA as the minimum target.
There are over 50 specific requirements. You don't need to memorize them. Here's what they cover in plain language:
Can people see it?
- Text has enough contrast against its background
- Images have text descriptions for screen readers
- Videos have captions and audio descriptions
- Nothing relies only on color to convey meaning
- Content can be enlarged to 200% without losing functionality
Can people use it?
- Everything works with a keyboard — no mouse required
- Touch targets are large enough to tap accurately
- Users have enough time to read and respond
- Nothing flashes in a way that could trigger seizures
- Users can skip repetitive navigation to get to content
Can people understand it?
- Page language is identified so translation tools work
- Navigation is consistent across pages
- Error messages clearly explain what went wrong
- Forms tell you what's expected in each field
- Instructions don't rely on shape, location, or color alone
Does it work with assistive technology?
- Screen readers can parse the page structure and headings
- Buttons and links are properly labeled
- Dynamic content updates are announced to screen readers
- Custom controls have the right roles and states
- Focus is managed correctly when content changes
You don't need to know how to check all of this manually. You need a tool that does it for you — and then helps you fix what it finds.
The Risk
What happens if you don't address this?
Not a scare tactic — just an honest accounting of what's at stake.
Lawsuits
ADA website accessibility lawsuits have increased every year since 2017. The Northern and Southern Districts of New York account for a disproportionate share of filings — but no state is exempt. Small businesses are frequently targeted because they're less likely to have legal defenses in place. The average cost to defend a single lawsuit, even if you win, runs $10,000–$50,000 in legal fees.
Demand letters
Many accessibility claims begin with a demand letter before any lawsuit is filed. The letter typically demands a settlement payment and a commitment to remediate. For small businesses, settlements from demand letters typically range from $5,000 to $25,000. For larger organizations, significantly more. The issue doesn't go away by ignoring the letter.
EU enforcement
EAA enforcement began in June 2025. Penalty structures vary by EU member state, but consequences can include fines, mandatory remediation orders, and restrictions on selling products or services in EU markets. Non-compliance is not simply a financial penalty — it can result in losing access to the market entirely.
Lost customers and reputation
The disability community has over $1 trillion in annual disposable income in the U.S. alone. An inaccessible website doesn't just create legal risk — it turns away paying customers. Accessibility failures that result in lawsuits become public record. In an era where consumers make purchasing decisions based on corporate values, being publicly inaccessible is a reputational liability.
A note on good faith: Courts and regulators look more favorably on organizations that can demonstrate they are actively working to improve accessibility — even if they haven't reached full compliance yet. Having records of what you scanned, what you found, and what you fixed matters. "We're working on it" is a meaningful defense when you can prove it.
Where to Start
Five steps to get from zero to compliant
You don't need to fix everything overnight. You need a clear path and steady progress.
- 1
Find out where you stand
Run an accessibility scan on your website to get a concrete list of issues. This replaces vague worry with specific problems you can actually act on. You need to know what's broken before you can fix it.
- 2
Prioritize by impact
Not all issues are equal. Start with the ones that completely block access — missing image descriptions, keyboard traps, missing form labels. These are both the most harmful to users and the most defensible as priorities. Save low-severity issues for later passes.
- 3
Fix and verify
Work through the issues and retest each fix to confirm the problem is actually resolved — not just partially addressed. It's easy to fix the symptom without fixing the cause. Verification matters.
- 4
Document everything
If you're ever questioned about your accessibility compliance, having records of what you found, what you fixed, and when you fixed it is your best defense. Document issues, exceptions, and decisions — not just final outcomes.
- 5
Make it ongoing
Accessibility isn't a one-time project. Your website changes — new pages, new features, new content. Each change can introduce new issues. Regular scans catch problems before they accumulate into a liability.
The Tool
How Pallas helps
Pallas is an accessibility operations platform built by Lonia AI. It goes beyond telling you what's wrong — it gives you a workspace to track, assign, and resolve every issue so nothing falls through the cracks.
Step 1
Scan
Analyze your website or documents against WCAG 2.2, Section 508, and EN 301 549. Get a clear list of issues with severity levels — critical, major, minor, advisory — and specific guidance on what to fix.
Step 2
Fix
Every issue enters a structured workflow: assign it to the right person, track progress, verify the fix through retesting. Whether it's your developer, designer, or content team — everyone knows what they own.
Step 3
Prove
Generate compliance reports for stakeholders, maintain an audit trail of every action, and document exceptions with rationale. If you're ever questioned, you have the records to show your work.
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