Accessibility statement: does your online shop need one?
An accessibility statement is a publicly available document in which a website operator states the extent to which its website is accessible, which parts are not yet accessible and how to report a problem. It may sound as though every online shop suddenly needs one. The reality is more nuanced—and confusing these requirements is the source of most of the uncertainty.
A common problem: public- and private-sector obligations are confused
There are two different regimes, and people often confuse them.
The public sector—public authorities, municipalities and schools—has been required to publish a formal accessibility statement for years. The obligation follows from the Web Accessibility Directive for public-sector websites. The statement has a prescribed structure, and most online guidance describes this particular regime.
In the private sector, the European Accessibility Act (EAA) applies only to selected products and services, such as consumer e-commerce within the EAA’s scope. The scope, exemptions and specific information obligations must be assessed individually. The EAA does not directly require the same formal statement as the public-sector website regime; for services within its scope, however, it does require information on how the service meets the accessibility requirements.
This is where the trap lies. You write that the website is “fully compliant with WCAG” simply to tick a box—but if the claim is untrue and you have no evidence for it, you have just created a potential problem. An inaccurate statement is worse than acknowledging a shortcoming that you are working to resolve.
How to prepare accurate information
The process is the reverse of the one businesses often choose. First establish the state; only then make claims about it.
We begin with a free initial scan, which reveals the first machine-detectable findings within the agreed scope, and follow it with automated and manual checks as necessary. The output may be a technical report with findings ordered by severity and mapped to relevant criteria. This is technical evidence without automatic legal effect: it describes the scope checked and the state found, not the website’s full legal compliance.
The technical and manual findings can support factual accessibility information: not an empty “we comply”, but a description of the current state and the remediation in progress. The precise mandatory content and form must be confirmed according to the operator’s status and the type of service; this does not replace legal assessment. The technical evidence can help in the event of an inspection.
Automated checks cover the machine-testable portion. Where the meaning of content is at issue, automation has limits, and we state that openly.
What accurate evidence gives you
- You can separate technical findings from the legal assessment of what information you must provide and in what form.
- The information you publish is supported by measurement rather than an estimate.
- Instead of an unsupported general declaration, you have factual technical evidence for further decisions.
Next step
Not sure what you must state about your online shop or whether you can support it with evidence? Contact us and we will agree the scope of an initial scan and further manual verification. The legal scope and mandatory form of the information must be confirmed separately.