By June 2025, your website's accessibility will either be a legal issue or a business asset
The deadline for your website to comply with the European Accessibility Act (EAA) is June 2025. Less than six months away.
If you’re not ready, not only do you risk a fine of up to €150,000 – you also risk missing out on the benefits of greater accessibility. Namely, better customer experience and conversion for all users.
Meeting the requirements of EAA is much more comprehensive than font sizes and contrasts.
VML provides a free guide and free consultation (using our AI Accessibility Assessment tool) so you can immediately see how ready your site is and what changes you still need to do.
Here’s the carrots for acting now:
Serve your whole market
Over 80 million individuals in the EU have some form of disability – they can be CEOs, CFOs, decision-makers, employees, entrepreneurs. They’re working in every industry. They’re in your target audience.
Improve user experience for all users
Better accessibility is a key measure of better user experience for everyone – helping every user achieve what they want to on your site is critical to conversion, building satisfaction, loyalty and customer referrals.
Boost your SEO, rankings and organic traffic
Better accessibility leads directly to better visibility and findability for your site. Search engines like Google use bots to "read" and index your website. These bots function similarly to screen readers, relying on accessibility features to understand your content. If your website lacks these features, you’re undermining your SEO efforts.
Designing for diverse needs creates new solutions
When you tackle the challenges faced by users with disabilities, you often uncover simpler, creative solutions that benefit everyone. Companies that embrace inclusive design are positioned for significant growth, with studies showing a substantial revenue boost linked to accessibility-driven innovation.
And the sticks…?
Fines of up to €150,000
Companies that are not compliant risk fines across the EU. And remember, you aren’t just at risk in the country you operate from, but in any EU country you are serving.
Lost customers and revenue
By remaining inaccessible, you're slamming the door on a huge segment of potential customers and limiting your own opportunities. Are your competitors compliant?
The Retrofit Reality
Retrofitting for accessibility, admittedly, isn't as straightforward as building it in from the outset. It often requires more resources, careful adjustments, and can get a little complex. Think of it like adding an extension to an already-built house – it's doable, but requires extra planning.
Reputational risks and legal challenges
Inaccessible products and services can lead to negative publicity, boycotts, and lawsuits from individuals or advocacy groups fighting for accessibility rights.
Understand what’s needed
Download our guide: ‘Make accessibility a competitive advantage’ and share with your colleagues. It’s a simple, easy to follow guide for organisations to understand what’s needed to meet or surpass the EAA requirements, and tips for different teams – from designers and developers to content creators and authors.
See what needs to change and how
Using our Accessibility Assessment AI tool to scan your site, we can immediately show you its current accessibility status and provide recommended priorities to address and how to do so. Book a free consultation.