Digital accessibility in New York: From enforcement to readiness

Welcome and Introductions

Sapir: All right, I think it’s good for us to get started, and anyone else can join as they arrive. Welcome, everyone, and thank you for joining today’s webinar about evolving e-commerce expectations in Europe.

This is a collaboration between accessiBe, a web accessibility company—you’ll learn more about what that means—and PrestaShop. We’re very excited to have you here and excited about this partnership. You’ll learn more today about how the two are connected.

If you’re joining now, feel free to tell us in the chat where you’re joining from. We’re excited to see so many different European countries represented and to share more insight into how you can approach the expectations and regulations of the European Accessibility Act.

Christian, why don’t you get us started?

Christian: Hello, everybody. My name is Christian, and I’m an evangelist at PrestaShop. I work closely with our developers, agencies, and merchants. My role is essentially to connect PrestaShop with its community by explaining our technical direction, sharing updates, and channeling feedback back to the company.

A little bit about PrestaShop: PrestaShop is an open-source e-commerce platform powering more than 200,000 online stores worldwide, primarily small and medium-sized businesses. That is why the European Accessibility Act is so important for the merchants in our ecosystem.

I’m very happy to be here today to talk about accessibility in e-commerce, what it really means for merchants, and why I’m proud that PrestaShop is partnering with accessiBe on this important topic.

Sapir: Thank you so much. Hi, everyone, and nice to meet you. My name is Sapir Den, and I’m the Brand and Community Lead at accessiBe. I’ve been with the organization for about four and a half years.

What I’ve learned during my time here is that accessibility is no longer simply a best practice. It’s part of the operational infrastructure you need to create, especially in e-commerce. We’ve been seeing that more and more through regulation and enforcement around the world. In Europe, specifically, enforcement began over the past year.

Today’s conversation will focus on what this means for PrestaShop merchants and for organizations considering working with PrestaShop, as well as how to best prepare for the future of digital commerce.

We’ll begin with some background on the EAA—the European Accessibility Act—to give you context and a clear understanding of the requirements. Please feel free to share questions in the chat or through the Q&A function as we go.

We’ll then discuss what the EAA means for e-commerce, where stores face digital accessibility risk, how enforcement works, what to look out for, and the best practices that can help you prepare. We’ll close by answering any remaining questions.

Understanding the European Accessibility Act

Sapir: The European Accessibility Act is a law that came into effect in June 2025. It requires certain products and services to be accessible to people with disabilities. When we say they need to be accessible to people with disabilities, what we really mean is that they need to be accessible to everyone.

People with disabilities are the largest minority group in the world, and they also represent significant purchasing power. When your products and services aren’t accessible, you miss opportunities to expand your market and improve their overall usability.

The EAA isn’t only saying, ‘You need to be accessible for the sake of being accessible.’ It’s also about making sure that every user can browse, buy, and manage an account without encountering barriers.

Who does it apply to? You do not have to be based in the EU. If you sell goods or services to consumers in the EU, you need to meet the EAA’s accessibility requirements. The rule can also apply when you operate a digital service used in the buying process, including integrations on your website, provided that you meet the basic size thresholds.

We’ll talk later about which organizations may qualify for an exemption and the practices they should still consider, because this is clearly the direction the market is moving in.

One of the most interesting findings from accessiBe’s research over the past year is that, although the EAA is already in effect, most e-commerce businesses are not prepared. We surveyed 300 e-commerce leaders around the world a few months ago. Seventy-one percent said they sell to the EU, yet 85% said they were not prepared for the EAA.

That means most of the organizations we surveyed had not yet begun their compliance work. This reflects the reality we’re seeing across e-commerce teams. The requirements create obligations, but they can also bring substantial business benefits. Without accessibility standards in place, however, businesses open themselves up to exposure and possible enforcement risk.

What the EAA Means for E-commerce

Sapir: So what does this mean for e-commerce? This is where Christian and I can have an interesting conversation, and we welcome your questions as well.

The first implication is obvious: compliance. Every business wants to comply with the law. No one wants to act unlawfully or create unnecessary risk for their organization.

But accessibility also affects cart abandonment and discoverability. Our research found that most e-commerce businesses had not audited their checkout flow during the previous year. If you aren’t auditing your own processes, you may not realize that customers are unable to complete the checkout flow and are abandoning their carts. That represents a market worth roughly $260 million.

The other issue is discoverability. Christian, when you think about accessibility and discoverability in e-commerce, what comes to mind?

Christian: You mean when people are shopping and purchasing goods online?

Sapir: Exactly.

Christian: I’d like to return to the word ‘compliance.’ In the EU, people often hear that word and think about all of the requirements they already manage, such as GDPR. But those regulations exist for a reason. GDPR protects privacy, while other rules ensure that information such as pricing is presented correctly on product pages.

Accessibility is another opportunity to make the internet better. It doesn’t only help people with disabilities purchase from a website. It can also lead to a clearer site structure, more understandable categories, better menus, and easier navigation throughout the store.

There are many areas you can improve simply by stepping back and considering how the store works for people with disabilities. It’s a valuable opportunity to understand your customers and your business better. I see accessibility as an opportunity, not simply another regulation merchants have to follow.

Sapir: I completely agree. When you make a website more accessible, you can also improve the checkout flow and the way people navigate the site. That brings us directly to discoverability.

With AI and large language models becoming part of how people find information—and with everyone trying to appear near the top of ChatGPT’s results—the structure of your website matters. When content is structured accessibly, you use proper headings, appropriate font sizes, meaningful alternative text for images, and a logical user journey.

That structure not only helps a person navigate the website. It also helps machines understand and navigate it. An accessible website can therefore improve discoverability through AEO—answer engine optimization—in much the same way that good structure supports SEO.

Christian: That’s right. We’re also moving toward a time when people, including people with disabilities, may complete purchases through third-party AI platforms or chat tools. Making a store more accessible and discoverable is simply better for the business. It is worth pursuing because it improves the website and makes it easier for customers and technology platforms to understand.

Sapir: At this point, accessibility is becoming part of the cost of doing business. Security and privacy were not necessarily top of mind 15 years ago, but today you cannot begin operating online without basics such as an SSL certificate. Accessibility is moving in the same direction, and organizations that start sooner are better positioned to benefit.

It’s also worth remembering that the disability community is one of the most brand-loyal communities. If people have a positive experience, they are likely to return. If they feel excluded—because they cannot reach a navigation button, understand the content, or complete a purchase—they are less likely to come back and may tell their friends and family about the experience.

That is another reason to start building accessibility into the business now. Christian, what does all of this mean specifically for PrestaShop merchants?

What the EAA Means for PrestaShop Merchants

Christian: The EAA makes accessibility a legal requirement for online merchants in the EU and also for merchants outside the EU who sell to EU customers.

At PrestaShop, we aim to provide an accessibility-aware technical foundation. One example is PrestaShop 9.1, the upcoming version, which includes a new storefront called Hummingbird. We applied WCAG standards while developing it, and it is approximately 93% aligned with the EAA requirements.

We work on accessibility standards in the core platform, but compliance is not automatic. Installing PrestaShop does not instantly make a merchant compliant with the EAA. Stores include themes, modules, payment integrations, custom scripts, and content changes, and each of those elements can affect accessibility.

Even a routine merchant update can introduce barriers. A merchant might change banners, add promotional slides, modify button colors, or use a page builder that makes visual changes very easy. Those choices can either support accessibility or unintentionally undermine it.

We often see redesigns and feature updates introduced without accessibility awareness. That can create serious problems for people using screen readers and other assistive technologies.

Accessibility, therefore, has a direct impact on PrestaShop merchants and on merchants around the world. PrestaShop’s role is to provide a strong foundation and then work with partners such as accessiBe and developers across our ecosystem to improve the final customer experience.

Sapir: That connects to a conversation we had while preparing this webinar about my own experience building a website. You mentioned changing banners and buttons, and those are real examples. But organizations may also have many people with administrative access to the site. Those users may run A/B tests, add products, or introduce new content and design elements.

All of those updates can make the website less accessible. Even if you begin with an accessible theme and a strong core foundation, you can gradually create a mess if you keep building without stopping to audit, review, and remediate.

Accessibility needs to remain in the back of your mind as you work. It is another layer of operating the business and designing the user experience for everyone.

Christian: Exactly. Accessibility is a continuous responsibility. Every time the store changes, you need to make sure that the new experience remains accessible.

Where E-commerce Experiences Break

Sapir: We’ve covered the compliance background, what the EAA means for e-commerce, and what it means for PrestaShop merchants. Some people joining us may be very new to accessibility and may have only heard general information about the EAA. So let’s look at some common ways digital experiences break.

These are everyday components of e-commerce websites. The first is navigation and the structure of the page. Christian mentioned banners and buttons moving around. I once worked with a drag-and-drop website where I moved headers, footers, and content boxes all over the page.

Now consider a customer who does not use a mouse and instead navigates with a keyboard. Without a logical structure, the keyboard focus might jump from the top of the page to the bottom, return to the top, move left and right, skip an image, and jump to a button. The customer may never reach the area they actually want to use.

It isn’t that the person doesn’t want to become a customer. The site has removed its ability to navigate. That is why navigation is one of the most important issues. Christian, what would you add?

Christian: I would summarize it this way: if users cannot reach the products, the conversion process never begins.

It also isn’t only a concern for people with disabilities. Everyone uses forms on the web. Many people use the Tab key to move through form fields. If the form is not implemented correctly, the focus can jump to unpredictable places, which is frustrating for any user.

The same is true when someone uses the space bar to select a ‘Remember me’ checkbox and nothing happens. Improving accessibility improves the experience and comfort of everyone using the site, and that should motivate merchants to invest in it.

Sapir: That’s an excellent point. It makes me think about forms that reject a password without explaining why. When someone enters information incorrectly, the form should identify the problem and explain how to correct it. That feedback is itself an accessibility feature.

For example, if I enter my email address as ‘name@gmail’ and forget ‘.com,’ the form should tell me that it is not a valid email address. Otherwise, I may have no idea what I did wrong. These seemingly small details can have significant implications for conversion.

Menus are another common issue. If a mega menu contains multiple levels and tabs, but assistive technologies cannot reach the dropdowns, customers may be unable to find entire areas of the store. A person navigating without a mouse or someone using a screen reader may skip those elements completely, which also affects the conversion rate.

Images are another major area of web accessibility—and one I find especially interesting. I’ve had clients say, ‘Blind people aren’t shopping on my website.’ That simply isn’t true. They may be shopping there, and vision also exists on a spectrum. Christian and I are both wearing glasses today, for example.

When you add alt text to an image, you place a description in the code so that someone using a screen reader can understand what the image shows. Alt text also provides useful context when an image fails to load. And, as we discussed earlier, it adds meaningful background information that supports SEO and AEO.

Christian: Everything is connected. Images are particularly interesting because a screen reader may otherwise announce something like ‘image1234.jpg.’ That gives a shopper no useful information and must be incredibly frustrating when they are trying to understand or purchase a product.

The SEO point reinforces the broader idea: merchants are not being forced merely to make a store accessible. They are being pushed to make it better across user experience, SEO, AEO, and GEO. There is a great deal of value in stepping back and improving accessibility.

Sapir: The ‘image1234.jpg’ example is a good one. I’ve also visited inaccessible websites where buttons were not coded or labeled properly. A screen reader simply announced ‘link, link, link,’ without telling the user where any of those links would go.

Christian: Exactly—‘view,’ ‘click,’ or ‘link’ without context. That is a common issue.

Fortunately, AI can also support developers. Some coding tools now suggest adding alternative text or a title to a button. That support is useful on the development side, but inaccessible labels are still extremely difficult for customers with disabilities to navigate.

Education is important. The more merchants understand these problems, the more likely they are to fix them.

Sapir: Once people understand the barriers and the benefits—especially in the checkout process—they can see why the work matters. This is an e-commerce conversation, and we want merchants to sell more. Accessibility improvements can show up directly in conversion results.

Common Sources of Accessibility Exposure

Sapir: What are some other common sources of exposure that are especially relevant to the PrestaShop ecosystem, Christian?

Christian: The first is a non-compliant theme. Whenever you choose a new look for the storefront, you should make sure that the theme is accessible. In the PrestaShop ecosystem, we provide the foundation that developers build upon, but merchants still need to consider the accessibility of the final theme. Not every business has the time, money, or resources to invest in a fully custom storefront, so this is something to watch closely.

The second area is third-party modules and service providers. Accessibility is a shared responsibility. It does not sit only on the merchant’s shoulders. Business partners and technology providers also need to ensure that their solutions are accessible. If you use a third-party module or service that is not accessible, contact the provider and explain that improving the solution will benefit both the provider and its customers.

Custom JavaScript is another source of exposure. Dynamic interactions can be incompatible with screen readers. CAPTCHAs may be implemented incorrectly, and dynamic forms often include dependencies where clicking one option causes another field to appear. If the new field is not announced or reachable, the form becomes inaccessible.

Finally, there is the risk created by too many authorized users. When many employees have access to the back office or administrative area, they may continually add content, banners, and other elements. Without documentation and a clear process for ensuring that new content is accessible, a site can become inaccessible even if it was accessible a week earlier.

Trusted employees, clear guidance, and documentation are essential. The situation also proves that accessibility is a continuous effort. Merchants need regular audits, scans, and reviews to confirm that the store remains accessible over time.

Sapir: I couldn’t have said it better.

How EAA Enforcement Works

Sapir: This is how EAA enforcement may begin. The process is typically complaint-driven: a customer encounters an accessibility barrier on a website and submits a complaint to the relevant national authority. That complaint can lead to a formal notice.

The authority may then review the specific user journey and determine whether it meets accessibility requirements in practice. Most legal authorities refer to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines—WCAG 2.1 AA—when evaluating a digital experience. accessiBe supports WCAG 2.2 AA.

If the authority confirms that a barrier exists, it may require remediation or proof of action. By identifying barriers early and maintaining the documentation Christian mentioned, a business can reduce both its exposure and the likelihood of facing enforcement or fines.

Why are we emphasizing this? Fines can reach up to €500,000. In Germany, during the first year of the EAA, there was already a €150,000 fine related to missing alt text in a checkout flow.

One practical step you can take after this webinar is to audit your own checkout flow. Test it without a mouse, using only the keyboard. Consider what would happen if you could not see the screen and needed a screen reader. Ask yourself how you would navigate the store and which elements you could begin improving today.

The Digital Trust Index in Europe scanned homepage compliance across more than 250,000 websites and found that 93% failed on the homepage alone. If barriers already exist on the homepage, you can imagine what may be happening across the rest of the customer journey. That is why businesses need to start taking action now.

Who Owns Accessibility?

Christian: People may be wondering who should be responsible for accessibility. The answer depends on the structure of the business, but accessibility should be embedded in the way the organization operates. It should not be treated as a one-time project.

Like privacy and security, accessibility requires continuous attention and the right expertise. That is where accessiBe comes in. Sapir, could you share more about the company’s approach?

How accessiBe Supports Continuous Accessibility

Sapir: I’ve been with accessiBe for quite a while. We began with accessWidget, which is available in the PrestaShop Marketplace. It is an AI-powered solution that helps remediate accessibility barriers and allows users to make adjustments that support their individual needs.

As accessibility requirements and AI technology have evolved, we have expanded into a platform with several solutions. We offer developer tools that help teams address accessibility in the source code, as well as services such as audits and user testing for teams launching a website, a new page, or a new domain.

AI can help with the continuous nature of accessibility, but the work also requires human expertise. accessWidget scans a website every 24 hours and applies ongoing remediations. Customers receive monthly reports and can request information more frequently to understand what changes have been implemented.

Businesses can also add manual testing and custom remediation through our professional services team. Trained experts review the website and identify barriers that may remain in complex user journeys or integrations that need additional attention.

We do not expect every organization to have complete accessibility expertise, and most developers do not. That is one of the reasons so many websites remain inaccessible. The earliest accessibility guidance was created before websites became as common, dynamic, and complex as they are today. As businesses add more AI and more integrations, human review remains essential to make sure the experience works for everyone.

That is a brief overview of our product ecosystem and the support available to help merchants get started. You can visit the PrestaShop Marketplace and begin a trial of accessWidget. The broader next steps are to choose an accessible foundation, oversee third-party components, and begin auditing the experience. Christian, would you like to expand on that?

Practical Next Steps for PrestaShop Merchants

Christian: For PrestaShop merchants, readiness begins with a strong foundation. PrestaShop is working to provide that foundation and to identify the right partners to help merchants throughout the ecosystem maintain accessible stores.

Choose accessible solutions whenever possible, and remember that accessibility is a continuous effort. It is like security and privacy—it needs regular attention rather than a one-time project.

Audit the store regularly. Review third-party modules and custom code because they may introduce barriers even when no one intended to create them. Maintain clear documentation for employees and coworkers who manage the website’s content.

All of these factors determine whether the store remains accessible. And accessibility is not only about legal compliance. It affects the business, the user experience, SEO, AI discoverability, and every other aspect we have discussed. Improving those areas improves the business itself.

Accessibility Best Practices

Sapir: It all comes back to performance. That was an excellent closing point.

Before we end the session and move into Q&A, we want to leave you with a short, non-exhaustive checklist of accessibility best practices.

First, audit your critical flows. Make sure product search and checkout are navigable with assistive technologies. Simplify the checkout process so that every customer can complete a purchase.

Second, label everything clearly. You do not want buttons that are announced only as ‘button’ or images announced only as ‘image,’ especially when those elements contain important information.

Third, design for clarity. Your website may not target every possible customer, but the content should be understandable to every person in the audience you do serve.

Finally, use feedback. Work with an accessibility provider, ask colleagues to test the experience, and invite people with disabilities from the community to use the website. Those practices will help you prepare for the EAA now and maintain readiness in the years ahead, because this is the direction the market is moving in.

While we wait for questions, Christian, what is the one thing you hope people remember from today’s webinar?

Final Takeaway

Christian: I hope people think about accessibility not as another regulation coming from the EU or another authority, but as an opportunity to make both their business and the internet better.

Accessibility can improve so many aspects of using websites that it should not be viewed only as a regulatory burden. It is a chance to improve the entire experience.

I’ll also emphasize again that it is not a one-time project. Accessibility is a continuous effort and should be embedded in the way a business operates—not only in e-commerce, but everywhere on the internet.

Sapir: I completely agree. E-commerce has been targeted repeatedly in the United States and is now such an important topic in the EU because it is transaction-based and because e-commerce websites change frequently. Seasonality, product availability, and other updates all affect the content customers encounter and the way it is communicated.

I mentioned earlier that I would cover possible EAA exemptions. A microenterprise—generally a business with fewer than 10 employees and under €2 million in annual turnover—may qualify for an exemption. But everything we have discussed today shows that accessibility is the direction all businesses are moving in. Even an exempt business can set itself up for success by starting these best practices now.

I don’t think we have any more questions unless someone wants to add one right now. Christian, I had a wonderful time speaking with you today. Thank you so much for joining us, and thank you to everyone who attended. We’ll share the recording after the webinar. Have a great day, everybody.

Christian: Thank you, Sapir. Have a great day, everyone. See you. Bye-bye.