7 May 2025
Are You Ready for the European Accessibility Act? A Practical Guide for Businesses
You’ve heard of the European Accessibility Act (EAA) but you don’t know much about it, what it entails or how it might affect your organisation? Then you have landed in the right place, let’s break this down together.
What is the EAA?
The EAA is a piece of legislation designed to make products and services more accessible to people with disabilities across the European Union (EU). While this doesn’t directly affect markets outside of the EU, your organisation may be influenced by it if it currently exports or is looking to export products or services to the EU.
What products and services are covered?
The products covered by the EAA are those identified as being most important for people with disabilities. These include:
- smartphones,
- e-books,
- computers and operating systems,
- banking services,
- e-commerce
- ATMs, ticketing and check-in machines,
- TV equipment related to digital television services,
- telephony services and related equipment,
- access to audio-visual media services such as television broadcast and related consumer equipment,
- services related to air, bus, rail and waterborne passenger transport,
These products are however likely to have different accessibility requirements across EU countries.
When will the EAA come into effect?
The EAA will come into effect on 28 June 2025. Failing to comply with the law could result in penalties.
The UK’s Equality Act 2010 vs the European Accessibility Act
As many of us are more familiar with the Equality Act 2010, we thought it would be helpful to take a look at the differences between the UK’s Equality Act 2010 and the EAA.
Besides the geographical scope, the main differences between the EAA and the Equality Act 2010 are :
1. Focus and scope
EAA: The EAA focuses on improving accessibility of products and services for people with disabilities, particularly in areas such as transport, banking, e-commerce, and other public services. It sets out specific accessibility requirements for goods and services sold in the EU market, with an emphasis on digital accessibility and physical accessibility.
Equality Act 2010: The Equality Act is broader in scope, covering discrimination in various areas, such as employment, education, public services, and transport. It requires that people with disabilities are provided with reasonable adjustments to ensure they can access the same opportunities as non-disabled individuals. The Act is more focused on equality and anti-discrimination, not just accessibility.
2. Content specificity
EAA: The EAA provides detailed technical requirements for accessibility, especially regarding digital services, websites, mobile apps, and physical infrastructure. It focuses on creating specific accessible design standards to facilitate the participation of disabled people in the digital and physical environments.
Equality Act 2010: The Equality Act 2010 doesn’t prescribe detailed accessibility standards but requires businesses and organisations to make reasonable adjustments to accommodate disabled people in various settings. For example, an employer might need to modify a workspace or provide equipment to accommodate an employee’s disability, but there are no detailed guidelines on how to do so.
3. Digital Accessibility
EAA: The EAA has strong provisions for digital accessibility, specifically requiring websites, mobile applications, and other digital platforms to be accessible to people with disabilities. This includes the creation of specific accessibility criteria for public sector websites and mobile apps within the EU.
Equality Act 2010: While the Equality Act also mandates that websites and digital content should be accessible, it doesn’t provide the same detailed guidelines as the EAA. However, it would still be considered discriminatory if a business’s website or service is inaccessible, and adjustments would need to be made under the Act.
For further information about the EAA, visit the European Commission’s website.
A2i can help you making your documents accessible so please give us a call or send us an email. You can also take a look at our website! Or simply explore our transcription services portfolio for reference and inspiration.
Telephone: 01179 44 00 44
Email: info@a2i.co.uk
Website: www.a2i.co.uk
