Equality Act 2010
Key facts
- Jurisdiction
- United Kingdom
- Sector
- Public and private sectors
- Applies to
- Anyone providing a service to the public in England, Scotland, or Wales, for payment or not, including businesses, charities, and public bodies, and the websites, apps, and documents they provide. Northern Ireland has the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 instead.
- Standard
- None named in the Act
What it requires
A service provider must not discriminate against a person who needs the service because of disability, whether by not providing it, in the terms it offers, or through any other detriment.
Service providers also have a duty to make reasonable adjustments. The duty has three parts: change a provision, criterion, or practice that puts a disabled person at a substantial disadvantage; deal with physical features; and provide an auxiliary aid. For a website, that can mean fixing a barrier or offering another way to complete the task.
The Act does not name a technical standard. The UK government's public sector guidance treats WCAG 2.2 Level AA as the benchmark and says the Equality Act duties apply even where the 2018 regulations do not.
How it is enforced
A person who meets a barrier can bring a claim in court. The Equality and Human Rights Commission can also investigate and take enforcement action.
Sources
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