Accessibility isn’t just about doing the right thing – it’s about keeping customers, staying compliant, and protecting your revenue.
New research from the Government’s Research Institute for Disabled Consumers (RiDC) and Disability Unit, published in July 2025, shows that many private-sector digital experiences are still leaving disabled customers behind. Even more, 40% of respondents want the government to make accessibility mandatory, a clear signal businesses can’t afford to ignore.
Where Disabled Customers Face Barriers
Disabled people face barriers almost everywhere, both online and in person. Browsing a website, booking a table, or making a purchase is often far more complicated than it should be.
The sectors with the highest reported barriers are:
- Retail – 65% of respondents said shopping is a struggle, from inaccessible websites to physical layouts that make stores hard to navigate.
- Entertainment and hospitality – 57% reported barriers when trying to book tickets, order food, or access venues that don’t cater for all needs.
- Wellbeing, personal care, and beauty – 49% said they face challenges with services like salons, gyms, and healthcare appointments.
These barriers appear at every stage of the customer journey: researching, booking, buying, using products, and even asking for help.
Digital experiences are particularly difficult. Many people spend far longer online than they should, trying to navigate systems that weren’t designed for them. Complex menus, unreadable text, inaccessible forms, and chatbots that don’t work with assistive technology all lead to frustration, lost time, and exclusion.
Growing Public Demand for Mandatory Standards
The report shows 40% of disabled consumers want the government to make accessibility standards mandatory. That’s public demand speaking loud and clear.
This also aligns with the European Accessibility Act (EAA), already in force across the EU. For UK businesses, it’s a warning: accessibility is moving from “nice-to-have” to baseline expectation. Doing nothing now risks both your reputation and compliance.
Fixing Accessibility Benefits Everyone
Nearly half (49%) of respondents said inaccessibility has a major or severe impact on their daily life. For businesses, that means lost customers and extra support costs.
The good news? Improving accessibility benefits everyone. Smoother journeys, fewer workarounds, and friction-free online experiences protect revenue, reduce support costs, and build trust.
Practical Steps to Make Your Services Accessible
The report points to practical steps businesses can take:
- Co-design with disabled people: test your services with real users to make sure they actually work.
- Follow recognised standards: align your digital experiences with WCAG and best practices.
- Make support accessible: offer help beyond automated systems, so everyone can reach you.
- Invest in inclusive technology: websites, apps, and interfaces that work for all reduce effort and improve conversions.
How Recite Me can Help Your Business
Our solutions are designed to remove digital barriers and make online services accessible to everyone:
- Assistive Toolbar – Provides text-to-speech, translation, and customisable styling options to ensure websites and digital platforms are usable for people with disabilities, low digital confidence, or language needs.
- Website Accessibility Checker – Quickly identifies accessibility issues on your website and provides clear guidance to fix them.
- Accessibility Consultancy: we help organisations audit their digital platforms (websites/apps) for compliance with accessibility standards, create remediation roadmaps, produce policy and documentation (e.g. accessibility statements, VPATs), train teams, and provide ongoing support to build inclusive, legally compliant user experiences.
Accessibility Isn’t Just Compliance – It’s Good Business
Accessibility isn’t just about rules – it’s about real people, real customers, and real business impact.
Government-backed research makes it clear: digital exclusion is costing businesses time, money, and loyalty. With public support for mandatory standards growing, now is the time to act. Inclusive experiences aren’t just better for your customers, they’re better for your business too.
Get a free automated accessibility check of your websites homepage. This will identify and highlight any compliance issues on your website. Followed by recommendations on how to implement the necessary changes to make your website more accessible.
