Regulatory and Commercial Risk
The European Accessibility Act (EAA) requires many digital products and services sold into the EU to be accessible to people with disabilities. For in-scope mobile apps and websites, this means users must be able to complete key journeys using assistive technologies such as VoiceOver, TalkBack, NVDA, hardware keyboards and large text settings.
Non-compliance can lead to:
- Regulatory enforcement
- Procurement exclusion
- Legal complaints
- Financial penalties
- Removal from certain markets
For some sectors and jurisdictions, enforcement can include significant fines and legal consequences.Accessibility Affects Real Customers
Around 20% of people live with some form of disability.
Accessibility is about far more than supporting users who are blind or partially sighted. It also helps people with mobility impairments, cognitive disabilities and other conditions that affect how they interact with digital products.
Many users experience temporary barriers too, whether that's using a device one-handed, wearing gloves, recovering from an injury or relying on voice control. As populations age, changes in vision, dexterity and cognition become increasingly common.
By making your app or website more accessible, you create a better experience for everyone while ensuring more users can successfully access and use your services.
Accessibility barriers can prevent users from:
- Creating accounts
- Making payments
- Accessing services
- Completing key journeys independently
Poor accessibility can directly affect customer experience, conversion and retention.Better Accessibility Improves Usability for Everyone
Accessibility improvements often lead directly to better business outcomes. When apps and websites are easier to navigate, read and interact with, users are more likely to complete key journeys such as registration, purchases, payments and account management. Reducing friction helps improve conversion rates, increase customer satisfaction and reduce abandonment.
Accessible products are also easier to use for a broader audience, leading to improved retention, stronger customer loyalty and greater lifetime value. In many cases, the same improvements that make an app or website more accessible also create a faster, clearer and more intuitive user experience for all customers.
Accessible digital products are typically:
- Easier to navigate
- Clearer to understand
- More robust across devices
- More resilient to platform changes
- Better for older users and temporary impairments
Accessibility improvements often improve overall product quality and customer experience.
