Your Rights as a Person with Disabilities: Web Accessibility Protections

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is the primary federal law protecting your right to equal access. Title III specifically addresses public accommodations—businesses and organizations that serve the public. For over 30 years, courts have increasingly recognized that websites operated by public accommodations must be accessible. Title III applies to businesses like retailers, restaurants, banks, hotels, transportation services, and healthcare providers. If these organizations have websites, those sites must be accessible to people with disabilities. The standard generally accepted for accessibility compliance is WCAG 2.1, published by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). However, there's no federal agency that enforces web accessibility under Title III. There's no website inspector checking for keyboard navigation or alt text. The responsibility falls on you—people with disabilities—to identify barriers and assert your rights.

Several states have enacted laws that explicitly require web accessibility for government agencies and sometimes private businesses: If you live in a state without explicit web accessibility laws, you may still have protections under state disability rights laws, consumer protection statutes, or state interpretations of the ADA. Government websites are subject to even stricter requirements. Federal, state, and local government sites must comply with Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act, which typically requires WCAG 2.1 Level AA compliance or higher. Many states have adopted similar standards for state government websites. Private businesses have more flexibility in how they demonstrate accessibility, but must still provide equal access to people with disabilities under Title III of the ADA.

These entities almost certainly must have accessible websites: The accessibility requirement depends on whether the entity is considered a "public accommodation" or receives federal funding: Courts are still deciding whether these need accessible websites:

If a website is inaccessible, you generally have the right to:

While your rights are real, enforcement is complicated. The Department of Justice can investigate Title III complaints, but does not have robust resources for web accessibility enforcement. This means the burden falls primarily on individuals with disabilities to identify barriers and pursue remedies. Your specific rights depend significantly on where the website operator is located, where you live, and whether you're dealing with a state or federal matter. What's considered a violation in California may be treated differently in another state. Courts continue to develop web accessibility law. What constitutes adequate accessibility compliance is still being litigated. Technical standards are also evolving—WCAG 2.1 Level AA is widely recognized, but courts haven't uniformly mandated this standard. Section 508 (the law governing federal websites) does not give you a direct right to sue. You must file a complaint through administrative channels.

Your response options depend on your situation and goals:

Know your rights better with concrete evidence. Get a free WCAG accessibility scan to identify specific barriers on any website.