The Americans with Disabilities Act was instituted in 1990 in an effort to end discrimination based on differing abilities. Drawing heavily from the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964, which established protection against discrimination based on race, religion, sex or national origin. The ADA went a step further by requiring organizations to provide "reasonable accommodations" to employees with disabilities.
Unfortunately, if your website isn't ADA accessible, you are liable.
A lawsuit could be filed against your company if people with disabilities cannot access or use your site. Even if your business didn't intend to discriminate or exclude people with disabilities from visiting or using your website. You could pay thousands of dollars in lawsuits.
According to a report from the U.S. Census Bureau, 51 million people in the US aged 15 and older have a disability:
19.9 million have difficulty lifting or grasping, impacting use of a mouse or keyboard; and
8.1 million have a visual disability; they might rely on a screen magnifier or a screen reader, or might have a form of color blindness.
The Census Bureau also reports that 7.6 million have a hearing disability; they might rely on transcripts and/or captions for audio and video media.
By making digital content accessible, your organization can reach more customers, increase customer satisfaction, and gain a competitive edge over those who don’t include accessibility